Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office arrested a former Sunland Center Pathways of Marianna employee for abuse of a disabled adult. Aariran Devore Batson allegedly threw a disabled resident out of the door of a dining hall and then slammed the resident into a gate multiple times before placing the resident in a headlock. Investigators with MFCU received information regarding the alleged abuse from the Florida Department of Children and Families, Adult Protective Services program. According to the investigation, on May 25, the victim allegedly tried to use a phone at the Sunland Center campus to call the police. Batson began pulling on the disabled adult to stop the phone call and subsequently threw the victim out the door. After administering a headlock, Batson attempted to cover up his actions by cleaning up an elbow injury sustained by the victim.
