Tahlequah man pleads guilty to child endangerment for tattooing 2 young brothers

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - A Tahlequah man pleaded guilty Monday to tattooing gang signs on two young children.

Rocky Gritts pleaded to two counts of child endangerment. Authorities say Gritts tattooed 5- and 10-year-old brothers with symbols from the Surenos, a Mexican gang.

A Cherokee Elementary school resource officer noticed the tattoos in October 2012. The children identified Gritts, their uncle, as the person who gave them the tattoos.

The 10-year-old victim was given tattoos on each hand. He also had a burn on his upper arm that authorities believe was the beginning of a third tattoo. Investigators say he broke down and cried during an interview, saying he didn't want the tattoos and he tried to wash them off.

Gritts is the father of the victim in another high profile Cherokee County child abuse case . 

Jodi Rock, the mother of Gritts' infant son, confessed to authorities in 2012 she used a flat iron repeatedly on the baby's testicles. The child also had broken bones in various stages of healing.

Gritts was sentenced to four years in the Department of Corrections with the fourth year suspended. Upon release, he'll serve two years on probation and he'll have to pay various fines.