The parents of missing California baby Emmanuel Haro are behind bars, as investigators allege that they may have killed him days before reporting him missing.
On Tuesday, Jake and Rebecca Haro were charged with murder and making a false police reports.
According to FOX 11, investigators said 7-month-old Emmanuel likely died at some point between August 5 and August 14.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Rebecca Haro claimed that someone knocked her unconscious on August 14, at the Big 5 Sporting Goods store parking lot in Yucaipa.
She said she went to the store with Emmanuel to buy a mouth guard, while her husband and two other children were at a nearby park, where her oldest son had a game.
Rebecca Haro told police that she had been changing Emmanuel’s diaper in her truck when someone attacked her. She claimed when she woke up, the baby was gone.
Police interviewed the couple and found inconsistencies in their statements. Eight days later, they were arrested for murder.
“Based on the evidence, investigators determined a kidnapping in Yucaipa did not occur. It is believed Emmanuel is deceased, and the search to recover his remains is ongoing,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said Friday.
On Sunday, Rebecca Haro told the Press Enterprise that she’s innocent.
“I will not give up. I will not give up on my baby,” Rebecca Haro said from the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside.
She said someone had burglarized her vehicle, prompting her to ask if the store had security cameras.
“I want to be out looking for my baby,” she said, adding that her husband “would never hurt a baby.”
Jake Haro, however, has a 2023 conviction for felony willful cruelty to a child, according to the Los Angeles Times. He and his former wife, Vanessa Avina, pleaded guilty after their 10-week-old daughter was admitted to the hospital.
She had an “acute” fractured rib, six other rib fractures that were “healing,” a skull fracture, a brain hemorrhage, swelling in the neck, and a healing leg fracture, the Orange County Register reports.
Jake Haro was on probation when police arrested him.
He’s also facing felon in possession of a firearm charge and is due in court September 2 to answer that charge.
Meanwhile, the search for Emmanuel continues. Police are scheduled to provide an update Wednesday morning.
Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Emmanuel Haro/San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department]
