Updated

A Massachusetts father who severely beat and abused his 7-year-old son has been sentenced to up to five years in prison.

Randall Lints, of Hardwick, was sentenced Thursday in Superior Court in Worcester.

The Telegram & Gazette reports the 28-year-old Lints received a sentence of four to five years in state prison after pleading guilty to assault and battery on a child and two related counts.

His girlfriend is awaiting trial on similar charges.

Officials say Lints' son was found unresponsive in his father's apartment in July 2015 suffering from severe bruising and malnourishment. Investigators say the boy weighed 38 pounds.

The boy remains in state custody after several hospitalizations.

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Information from: Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.), http://www.telegram.com