ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- The father of Brook Stagles, the 3-year-old Rochester girl whose Nov. 14 death was ruled a homicide by the Monroe County Medical Examiner, is now under arrest.
Michael Stagles, Brook's father, was arrested Friday. That's according to county jail records and family members. The charges he faces have not been made public.
Brook's maternal grandfather, John Geer, believes the girl was beaten to death while in the care of Michael Stagles and his girlfriend, Erica Bell. Bell has been in jail since Nov. 12 on unrelated charges.
Michael Stagle's brother, Justin Clark, says Michael was a loving father who never hit his daughter Brook.
"Michael didn't hit his girl. He didn't discipline her. Most he did was put her in the corner" said Clark.
Clark said that the week before she died, Brook was sick, but family members all thought she had the flu. They maintain they never noticed any bruises.
Geer tells us Michael was arrested in connection to old charges, but he expects both Michael and Bell will be charged in connection to Brook's death.
Meanwhile, Clark believes believe Bell is responsible.
"She admitted to hitting the little girl, but then when she found out the little girl died, she changed her story," Clark said.
"I didn't know she was going to die. I thought she had the flu. I didn't know she had bruises all through her back and stuff like that."
Before Brook's death, Geer says his family made many calls to Child Protective Services, telling the agency they believed Brook was being abused. He says his calls were ignored.
Geer says that problem happens around the country, and too often. He says he's been talking to lawmakers and national news outlets, pushing for change to the system.
"The investigators are going to, and the prosecutors definitely are going to do their job. I know it's in good hands," Geer said. "They're going to take care of them two. Just the main thing now is that this doesn't happen to another child.
The Rochester Police Department and the Monroe County District's Attorney's Office will not comment on the case. If there are charges in this case, it's likely we'll only learn about them when an indictment is unsealed in court.