A Florida mother has been sentenced to 60 years in prison after prosecutors said she allowed her boyfriend to repeatedly abuse her young son — a campaign of cruelty that left the 5-year-old boy with a fractured skull and dozens of injuries.

Taylor Schaefer, of DeLand, received the lengthy prison sentence Friday after entering an open plea to 25 felony charges, including aggravated child abuse, kidnapping and tampering with a witness, according to the 7th Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office.

Authorities say the disturbing case unfolded in May 2023 when Schaefer initially contacted authorities claiming she had seen her boyfriend abusing the child on surveillance video while she was away from the home.

But investigators soon uncovered a much darker picture.

According to prosecutors, home surveillance footage showed Shawn Stone repeatedly attacking the boy, punching him and striking him with a mop following a bedwetting accident.

When the child was finally examined by medical professionals, doctors documented 46 visible injuries across his small body, including a fractured skull, officials said.

Investigators later discovered that multiple recordings of the abuse existed inside the home.

Evidence also showed that Schaefer had been present in the house during some of the attacks but failed to intervene or seek medical treatment for the child despite his obvious injuries, according to reports from WKMG, WFTV and WFLA.

Authorities say the cruelty went far beyond a single violent episode.

Video evidence allegedly showed the child being restrained with his hands bound behind his back for hours at a time. In some cases, investigators said, the boy was locked inside a dog cage and deprived of food as punishment.

Prosecutors said the abuse took place inside a home where three children were living.

State Attorney R.J. Larizza condemned the case in a statement following the sentencing.

“A mother’s sacred duty is to love and protect her children — not to viciously beat, torture and demean them,” Larizza said.

“It is a brutal reality that some mothers commit shamefully violent and cruel acts upon their children.”

Schaefer’s decision to enter an open plea meant the judge determined the final sentence rather than negotiating a specific deal with prosecutors.

The 60-year prison sentence shows just how severe the charges are, and the extent of the injuries the boy suffered, authorities said.

Meanwhile, the criminal case against Stone — the man accused of carrying out much of the physical abuse — is still moving through the court system.

Officials with the state attorney’s office confirmed that Stone’s case remains pending. It was not immediately clear whether he has entered a plea or when his trial might begin.

Prosecutors have not released further details about the condition of the child today, but the case stands as one of the more disturbing examples of prolonged abuse uncovered by investigators in the region.