Jake Haro claims that authorities incorrectly assumed he murdered his 7-month-old son because of his 2023 child cruelty conviction for sev...
Jake Haro claims that authorities incorrectly assumed he murdered his 7-month-old son because of his 2023 child cruelty conviction for severely injuring his 10-week-old daughter.
As authorities continue to search for baby Emmanuel Haro's remains, his father has vehemently denied that the boy was the victim of long-term abuse.
Jake Haro, 32, and his wife, Rebecca Haro, 41, denied causing harm to their 7-month-old son in a jailhouse interview with The Orange County Register on Wednesday, August 27.
Jake and Rebecca had been charged with murder and filing a false police report the previous day. They are all being held on $1 million bail.
Rebecca told police that her son was kidnapped on August 14 after she was knocked unconscious in the parking lot of a sporting goods store in Yucaipa, a city about ten miles east of San Bernardino.
During the 45-minute video interview at the jail, Haro was questioned about his trip to the Moreno Valley Badlands on Sunday, Aug. 24, when he was seen accompanying investigators as they searched for the baby's remains.
"I want to discuss it, but I can't," Haro told The Register. "I was told don't do any press."
What he did disclose was his 2023 child cruelty conviction for abusing his infant daughter Carolina in 2018.
He told The Register that because of that conviction, the police thought he killed his son.
"I pleaded guilty because I didn't have enough money to go to trial," Haro told The Register. "The judge said no one would believe my version of the story."
"They magically convinced me to accept this damn plea deal," he continued. "I was sick of court. The judge knows I did not do it. They just railroaded me. "I was the fall guy."
Haro was arrested in 2018 and charged with willful child cruelty after his 10-week-old daughter was brought to the hospital with extensive injuries, including multiple new and healing bone fractures, retinal hemorrhages, and brain injuries, according to the arrest warrant obtained.
Jake has a 7-year-old daughter with his ex-wife, Vanessa, not Rebecca.
She is now "permanently bedridden" and has "cerebral palsy as a result of long-term child abuse," Riverside County District Attorney Michael Hestrin said at a news conference on Aug. 27.
Jake claimed that he was washing the infant in the sink and accidentally dropped her. According to authorities, the doctor who examined the infant stated that her injuries could not have been caused by falling so short distance into the sink.
Jake pleaded guilty to child cruelty in 2023. The judge suspended his six-year prison sentence and ordered him to serve six months in a work-release program, followed by four years on probation. He was also ordered to participate in a child abuse treatment program.
Jake also spoke out in support of Rebecca, whom he married three years ago.
ia is killing her. She is a gorgeous woman. "She adores her kids."
Speaking about the criticism directed at the couple on social media, he told The Register, "God is with us." The allegations are horrendous, so people will undoubtedly become agitated."
When asked what he would tell Emmanuel if he had the chance, he replied, "I love you, buddy."
If you suspect child abuse, contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or visit www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week in over 170 languages.