Baby Emmanuel Haro's parents arrested on suspicion of murder amid search for missing 7-month-old boy
CABAZON, Calif. (KABC) -- The parents of 7-month-old Emmanuel Haro were arrested Friday on suspicion of murder, just over a week after the baby's mother reported him kidnapped in Yucaipa, authorities said.
Detectives with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department's Homicide Detail and Specialized Enforcement Division took Jake and Rebecca Haro into custody at the family's home in Cabazon, the agency said.
The search for baby Emmanuel is ongoing, but the child is presumed dead. Investigators spent hours combing through the parents' home in Cabazon Friday. AIR7 captured video of the scene as deputies sealed off the entire property.
Several people who live in the area stopped by the scene and were in shock at the latest development.
"It's heart wrenching for everybody," said Jennifer McCrary of Beaumont. "I'm a mother and a grandmother. It's been emotional. I've been following it since it started, and it's taken a toll on me. I've been having a hard time sleeping at night, just trying to keep up with the updates."
Raegen Wiler of Banning said she "got goosebumps" hearing the news.
"I had a feeling," she said.
On Tuesday, investigators seized a vehicle belonging to the baby's father.
Emmanuel Haro was reported missing Aug. 14 after his mother, Rebecca Haro, said she was attacked and knocked unconscious in a parking lot near a Big 5 store in Yucaipa. When she regained consciousness, she told investigators her baby was gone and that he had been kidnapped.
After Emmanuel's disappearance, the boys' parents came under scrutiny and the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department said that investigators found "inconsistencies" in the mother's story.
"Rebecca was confronted with inconsistencies in her initial statement and declined to continue with the interview," the sheriff's department said in a news release Saturday.
Sheriff's officials said investigators interviewed multiple people, including, Jake Haro, who pleaded guilty to willful cruelty to a child following a 2018 arrest, according to Riverside County records.
Jake Haro's attorney was at the scene Friday but did not speak to reporters.
Authorities are continuing their search for Emmanuel and ask anyone with information to contact the sheriff's Specialized Investigations Division at (909) 890-4904.
