The father of missing 7-month-old Emmanuel Haro allegedly confessed behind bars that he killed the baby and tossed his body into a trash can at their Southern California home.
Jake Haro, 32, reportedly shared the harrowing details with another inmate who turned out to be an informant, according to a report obtained by News Nation.
Jake Haro had previously told police that he accidentally rolled over on Emmanuel in bed and then buried the body, the outlet reported.
Both Jake Haro and his wife, 41-year-old Rebecca Haro, have been charged with murder in connection to their sonâs disappearance, after the mother initially reported her son kidnapped.
Emmanuelâs body has not yet been found but authorities, including Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin, Sheriff Chad Bianco, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus, held a news conference Wednesday morning where they revealed how they believe the baby died and the status of his remains.
âWe have a pretty strong indication of where the remains of Baby Emmanuel are,â Hestrin said, noting that forensic evidence and witness statements contradicted the parentsâ initial story.
Officials said evidence shows Emmanuel was abused over time, and they believe Emmanuel eventually died from injuries from the ongoing abuse.
Court records show Jake Haro was convicted of willful child cruelty in 2023, following a case in 2018 in which his infant daughter with a previous partner suffered multiple severe injuries, including a skull fracture, brain hemorrhage, and broken ribs.
Jake Haro and his then-wife, Vanessa Avina, pleaded guilty to abusing their daughter. In that case, Jake Haro was sentenced to 180 days in a sheriffâs work-release program and ordered into a child abuser treatment program.
At Wednesdayâs press conference, Hestrin condemned that Jake Haro was sentenced to probation â âJake should’ve been in prison,â Hestrin said.
âIf that judge had done his job ⊠Emmanuel would be alive today,â Hestrin said, calling the ruling an âoutrageous error in judgment.â
Authorities first became concerned about Emmanuel Haro after Rebecca Haro told authorities that her son had been âkidnappedâ from her arms on August 14 in the parking lot of a sporting goods store in Yucaipa, California.
Eight days later, deputies from the San Bernardino County Sheriffâs Department arrested the couple, pointing to âinconsistenciesâ in their story.
On Sunday, Jake Haro was seen in Moreno Valley assisting detectives as they searched a remote stretch of the 60 Freeway near Gilman Springs Road for the childâs remains.
The couple appeared briefly in court Tuesday, where both were assigned public defenders. Bail was set at $1 million each. They are scheduled to return for arraignment on September 4. They also both face counts of filing a false police report.
Rebecca Haro has no known criminal history. She has continued to proclaim her innocence from custody. Speaking to reporters on Sunday, she said: âI wish I were out there searching for him.â
She is being held at the Robert Presley Detention Center, while her husband is at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility.
Prosecutors also revealed at the arraignment that Emmanuel Haro might have been dead up to nine days before his mother reported the abduction in Yucaipa.
According to newly released court documents viewed by KTLA, investigators believe the boy could have been killed sometime between August 5 and August 14.
Both parents remain held without bail.
