Gulfport Seabee’s ‘torture’ of his children included shooting with pellet gun, police say
A Gulfport Seabee shot his three children with an airsoft gun to punish and silence them, according to police testimony.
Nicholas Harold Clark, 35, of Gulfport, is jailed in Harrison County on three counts of felony child abuse for allegedly torturing the children when he shot plastic pellets at them. The children are ages 2, 4, and 7. The children’s mother, Courtney Elizabeth Dingeldein, 33, is jailed on three counts of felony child neglect because she allowed the abuse to happen.
According to Gulfport police Detective Ben Ford, an investigation began in mid-February after police and the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services got a report about the abuse and possible neglect of the children..
Gulfport police arrested Clark after they went with CPS workers to the couple’s home in an RV park at Three Rivers Road. Police arrested the children’s mother in March.
New details about the allegations against the couple came out during a bond hearing before Justice Court Judge Brandon Ladner.
At the hearing, Harrison County Prosecuting Attorney Herman Cox argued for the judge to keep Clark’s total bond set at $300,000 and Dingeldein’s total bond at $150,000. Cox pointed out that police charged the father under a specific child abuse statute for allegedly “torturing” the children.
An airsoft gun is a realistic-looking replica of a real gun that shoots small pellets or plastic projectiles using air pressure. The guns are sold in different forms, from pistols to assault-style rifles. In Mississippi, state law allows anyone 18 or older to buy airsoft guns.
Defense attorney Josh Johnson successfully argued for lower bonds for the couple. In his arguments, he emphasized that the couple had no criminal history and noted that Clark is still stationed at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Gulfport, though he lives in the RV park.
Johnson said there was nothing to suggest that Clark and Dingeldein would not attend any court hearings.
Ladner agreed, reducing Clark’s total bond of $300,000 by $150,000 to a total bond of $150,000. The judge reduced Dingeldein’s total bond of $150,000 by $75,000 for a total bond of $75,000.
The judge made the decision after hearing specific allegations in the case that remains under investigation.
In addition to Gulfport police, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating the allegations against Clark to determine whether it will take any action.
“Puncture marks and bruising’
At the hearing, Ford detailed the allegations against Clark.
According to Ford, police arrested Clark in February after the father admitted that he shot his 4-year-old daughter with an airsoft gun.
Clark told investigators he shot plastic pellets from the airgun at his daughter after she grabbed a real gun he was cleaning at the time. He said he shot her to punish her so she wouldn’t grab a gun from him in the future.
During a subsequent forensic interview with the children, Ford said police learned that it was a common practice for Clark to shoot his children with one of his airsoft guns as punishment.
The first time it happened, Ford said, Clark shot the three children at a dinner table in their RV.
“She (the 7-year-old) stated that Clark grabbed the airsoft gun and shot her two times, the 4-year-old five times, and the 2-year-old two times,” Ford said.
The daughter said her 2-year-old brother “gets it worse,” Ford said.
“He actually gets shot with the airsoft gun every time he cries,” Rord said.
At other times, police said Clark made the children stand in a corner in the RV while he shot the plastic pellets at them. At the hearing, Ford showed pictures of the “puncture marks” and “bruising” on the children’s legs and arms from when the pellets from the gun struck them.
Some of the wounds were fresh, Ford said, and others were in the process of healing.
A mother’s warning
In the home, Gulfport police found two airsoft handguns.
The children told investigators their mother did nothing to stop the alleged abuse.
For example, Ford said, the eldest child said that after Clark shot her one time, her mother issued a warning, saying: “’if you keep on misbehaving and breaking stuff, you’ll get more.’”
The couple remains jailed Thursday. A preliminary hearing is pending..
If convicted of felony child abuse by torture, Clark could go to prison for up to life. The mother faces a maximum sentence of up to 10 years on each count, plus $10,000 in fines.
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 4:17 PM.
