Kansas man convicted of fatally beating 8-year-old daughter

District Judge Jeffrey Goering sentenced Thomas Gatewood, 52, of Wichita, to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 843 months.

SEDGWICK COUNTY— A man already convicted of abuse will be sent back to prison for the rest of his life.

District Judge Jeffrey Goering on Wednesday sentenced Thomas Gatewood, 52, of Wichita, to life in prison with the possibility of parole. He spent more than 70 years in prison for the brutal beating death of his 8-year-old daughter.

Gatewood pleaded guilty in March to first-degree murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, child abuse, rape, sodomy, child endangerment, indecent assault on a child and intimidating a witness, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office.

According to Officer Kris Gupilan, on May 8, 2023, police were dispatched to a residence in the 600 block of N. Oliver in Wichita on a report of an unresponsive 8-year-old girl. The child was pronounced dead at the scene.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Gatewood for the murder of his 8-year-old daughter.

Wichita police utilized FLOCK technology to quickly locate Thomas and arrest him within hours of the warrant being issued.

The Exploited and Missing Children Unit and homicide detectives investigated the incident and presented the case to the district attorney’s office. Prosecutors say Gatewood repeatedly beat and stomped on the 8-year-old, and an autopsy showed her heart had broken. Another child in the home was also abused.

Court documents show he was previously charged with child abuse in Oklahoma in 2009.

Gatewood’s trial was scheduled for March 11.

-AP contributed to this report.