Parents of missing California baby arrested in murder investigation

Emmanuel Haro is shown in a photo posted on X by the San Bernardino County Sheriff.

CABAZON, Calif. — The parents of a missing 7-month-old boy were arrested Friday as part of a murder investigation, authorities in Southern California said.

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department says Jake and Rebecca Haro were arrested at their home in the desert community of Cabazon, which is about 20 miles (32 kilometres) from Palm Springs.

Authorities are still searching for Emmanuel Haro, who was reported missing last week by his mother, the department said in a post on X. The department declined to release additional details.

The arrests came a little over a week after Rebecca Haro reported to authorities that she was attacked outside a store in the San Bernardino community of Yucaipa while changing her son’s diaper and left unconscious. Authorities said Haro told them that when she awoke, her son was gone.

Haro was later confronted by authorities about inconsistencies in her account and refused to continue to co-operate, the sheriff’s department said in a statement.

Authorities searched the family’s home and Jake Haro hired a lawyer, the department said.

Rebecca Haro, 41, was booked into jail in Riverside County on Friday, online jail records show. No jail records were immediately viewable for Jake Haro.

The district attorney’s office in Riverside County, where Cabazon is located, said it is reviewing the case.

A message left for defense attorney Vincent Hughes was not immediately returned. Hughes represents Jake Haro in another case and told The Sun he didn’t believe the parents were responsible for the boy going missing.

“Whoever took my son, please return him, we just want him back,” Jake Haro told KTLA last week.

The Associated Press