A FATHER accused of murdering his seven-month-old son has been branded “the devil” by his former mother-in-law after he left his older daughter with brain damage years before.
Jake Haro, 32, and his wife, Rebecca, 41, have denied killing their son, Emmanuel, who went missing earlier this month, in what they initially said was an “abduction.”
Jake Haro, who is charged with murder in the death of his missing 7-month-old son.[/caption]
Baby Emmanuel is believed to have been killed by his parents, Jake and Rebecca Haro, who deny killing him[/caption]
They told police he was kidnapped from a California parking lot while Rebecca was changing his diaper, and joined the search before their arrest days later.
The Riverside County District Attorney now claims Emmanuel died from child abuse, but his remains have not been located.
It recently emerged that dad Jake has a 2023 felony conviction for child cruelty stemming from an arrest in Hemet, California, while he was married to his ex-wife, Vanessa Avina.
On October 13, 2018, their 10-week-old daughter was admitted to the hospital, and doctors told police the little girl had an “acute” fractured rib, six ribs with “healing” fractures, a skull fracture, brain hemorrhage, swelling of the neck, and a fractured leg bone that was “healing.”
An officer wrote in an affidavit for a warrant that the findings were “indicative of abuse (sic) head trauma, child physical abuse and nutritional neglect.”
Jake reportedly blamed the baby’s injuries on Vanessa.
Both eventually pleaded guilty to the charge in 2023, but escaped jail.
Following his arrest this month, Vanessa’s mother, Margarita Avina, gave an emotional interview to The U.S. Sun about her granddaughter’s terrifying ordeal.
I knew he would do something like this again.”
Jake Hero’s former mother-in-law claims
“They blamed my daughter, but Jake is the devil,” Margarita claimed, as she broke down in tears.
“And he gets away with murder. He got away with what he did to my granddaughter.”
The little girl, now a seven-year-old, was adopted by Vanessa’s cousin, along with another son.
Riverside District Attorney Michael Hestrin told a press conference earlier this week that the poor seven-year-old is “permanently bedridden” and has cerebral palsy as a result of long-term child abuse.
Margarita said, “I always wanted justice. I leave it to God, I think this is justice, but this didn’t have to happen to baby Emmanuel. I knew he would do something like this again.
“This poor baby. It’s been traumatizing, but I knew he would do it … look what he did to my granddaughter.
“I hope he pays. He has destroyed lives.”
Although Vanessa eventually pleaded guilty, her mom claims she was abused by Jake and would never harm their child, insisting she “wasn’t in her right mind.”
“My daughter is nothing compared to what they are saying,” she said. “It’s very, very upsetting. It hurts.
“This [Jake’s arrest] brings back everything that happened. I can’t even sleep.
“I don’t think my daughter was all there. He would tell her that nobody loved her. She was abused.
“I would grab her and say, ‘You need to leave. You need to do something.’ … She could never do anything.
“My daughter would never touch her kids. She has another kid [a baby], you should see how she is with this kid. If the baby even has a scratch.
“My daughter is still going through this, not having her children. She wanted her kids.”
Vanessa, through her mother, has declined to comment on the case and has allegedly hired a lawyer as she speaks to police about her experience with her ex.
A warrant from the 2018 incident alleges Vanessa had left her home to drop another child to school and returned 40 minutes later.
Jake claimed the baby had a fever, and he gave her a Tylenol after which he put her down.
Missing Emmanuel Haro’s sister, Promise Faith, is seen in a wheelchair after she suffered severe abuse[/caption]
Booking photos showing Rebecca Haro and husband Jake Haro provided by the San Bernardino County, Calif., Sheriff’s Department[/caption]
The document claims Jake eventially admitted to Vanessa that he had dropped the child in the sink, and her chest hit the center divider of the dual basin, but she never showed any signs of injury.
They allegedly went to bed hours later, but Vanessa then woke him up in the middle of the night, claiming something was wrong with the baby.
Margarita alleges that Jake only told Vanessa he dropped the baby after she woke him up.
“I got a call at five o’clock in the morning. And she says, ‘Mom, I’m in the hospital. The baby doesn’t want to feed.’ She was breastfeeding.
“She said, ‘Jake didn’t want me to bring the baby.’
“I think the baby was convulsing, like a seizure, and that’s when she called me. She’s like, ‘Mom, you need to come and take care of my kids. It’s bad mom. Just come.’
“I go over there, she called me again and said Jake had admitted to dropping the baby. I’m like, ‘What? Why didn’t he tell you that from the beginning?’
“Jake switched and threatened her, said, ‘I’m going to make sure they take your kids away and you die in jail.’
“When they went to the hospital in Hemet they [doctors] said the baby had fractured bones.
“They took her to another hospital, and I guess used florescent lights and saw marks on her neck and stuff, like he shook the baby.
“When my daughter found all that out, she was like, ‘What did you do to my baby? What did you do?’
“She’d taken [the baby] to the doctor before because there were brown patches underneath her eyes, and she didn’t know what was wrong with her.
“But they said everything was fine. There was nothing wrong with her.”
Magarita claims she tried to get the previous medical records for the child for her court case, but could not obtain them.
The grandmother alleges Vanessa lived with her until she fell pregnant with her and Jake’s first child, and she was unaware for months that they had secretly married.
She said, “I couldn’t talk to her, I couldn’t see her. He isolated her from her family. He didn’t want her to work.
“She used to work in Walmart at the vision center. She was a good worker, and he met her there.
“Sometimes I would go and visit her, and she wouldn’t even open the door, so I didn’t know if she was bruised, beat up.
“I would try to take food, and she would make excuses that they weren’t home.
“Sometimes I blame myself.”
The disappearance of Emmanuel Haro
SAN Bernardino police are probing the disappearance of missing baby Emmanuel Haro. The U.S. Sun breaks down the timeline surrounding his disappearance.
August 14: Emmanuel’s mom, Rebecca, reports him missing. She claimed she was attacked near a Big 5 Sporting Goods store in Yucaipa.
August 15: San Bernardino cops issue a statement, saying the search for Emmanuel is ongoing. They reveal that he has not been found.
August 16: Cops say they cannot rule out foul play.
August 17: Police visit the Haro family home.
August 18: Police say they have conducted extensive searches in the Yucaipa and Cabazon areas. They also reveal that a large amount of surveillance footage has been reviewed.
August 19: San Bernardino cops probe an alleged sighting of Emmanuel. Police have also seized a car belonging to Emmanuel’s dad, Jake.
August 20: Cops say Emmanuel still hasn’t been found. Police also receive they are probing a fire that broke out near the Haro family home.
August 21: One week since Emmanuel disappeared.
August 22: Jake Haro and Rebecca Haro are arrested and charged with murder. Police continue to search for little Emmanuel.
August 26: Jake and Rebecca Haro appear in court for the first time but their arraignment is delayed until September 2.
‘OPENING OLD WOUNDS’
Margarita claims her daughter’s story was never believed, and she eventually pleaded guilty and served community service, and had to attend child engagement classes.
The grandmother said they were allowed visits to the children for a while, but they fell out with the cousin who adopted them and have not been for two years.
Margarita claims she was desperate to adopt them and bought a bigger house, thinking she would get them back.
She said, “We miss the children. My daughter is missing her kids.”
Margarita saw the interview of Jake, appearing distressed on TV with his new wife Rebecca after their son went missing, but she says she didn’t believe their story or “fake tears.”
She said, “I saw all that. I knew he was lying. He’s a liar and a manipulator.
“This has opened old wounds.
“To me, I wouldn’t want him to be sentenced to death … that’s an easy way out. I want him to go to prison for the rest of his life.”
Jake and Rebecca are each charged with felony murder with malice, along with an additional misdemeanor charge of making a false police report.
They remain in custody on $1 million bail and have denied killing their son through jail interviews.
Their official arraignment is September 4, 2025, at 8:30 a.m.
Margarita says Vanessa, who also has an older child from a previous relationship, along with her new baby, struggled to get her life back on track but is now doing well.
“I talk to my daughter every day to see how she’s doing,” she said.
“She’s got her own place and everything.
“She works again and has a new partner, her baby daddy, but she doesn’t let anyone be with her kid.”
Emmanuel Haro’s father Jake is seen during a court appearance after his arrest[/caption]
