Eight-year-old Anthony told the dispatcher: “My daddy killed me with a knife, and I’m gone. Can you please send the Army men or the ambulance.”
Not long after the call was placed, Tony, the father, returned to the house. He wanted to make sure he finished the job. He wanted to make sure his little son was dead. He had stabbed him enough to do the job. And he knew that if Anthony was not dead, he would respond to his father. Then he would put the butcher’s knife to the little boy’s throat and finish off what he started.
Only a miracle could have saved him. And then the miracle arrived.
According to Anthony, angels whispered a secret message that only he could hear. They told the little boy to play dead while his father returned.
While his father examined Anthony’s bleeding body, the little boy did not move. He tried not to breathe. He tried not to blink. He held his eyes shut very tight like he was playing hide-and-seek.
Then at that very moment, a police officer arrived at the scene. And Anthony was safe. His father was taken away, and the boy recovered.
In 2006, Oprah wanted to speak to Anthony. She found his story of faith inspiring and thought it should be shared with America.>
She featured Anthony in her segment, “One of the Bravest Boys Oprah Ever Met.” She also brought back police sergeant Mark Eakes and fireman Jeff Colquhoun who were at the scene the day his father tried to kill him.
Tony Sukto pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of his wife and attempted murder of his eight-year-old son. But the jury was too smart for him. Tony Sukto was convicted and is still in prison to this day. Meanwhile, his son Anthony continues to share his story of survival to inspire others to be brave.
Anthony is a survivor. Take a look at Oprah’s segment to see the young boy speak about what he overcame on the day his father killed his mother and tried to kill him.