A seven-month-old child is believed to be in the custody of a kidnapper and potentially in grave danger after a vicious attack on his mother in Yucaipa on Thursday.
According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the child’s mother had just changed him when an individual, described as a heavyset man, attacked her, rendering her nearly or fully unconscious before snatching the child and leaving the scene in a white four-runner.
The Sentinel is informed that the kidnapping occurred proximate to the Big 5 Sports outlet at 34579 Yucaipa Boulevard in the shared parking lot for the now-shuttered Big Lots and Big 5 retail stores.
According to Rebecca Haro, she had traveled with her husband and four of her children and stepchildren from their home in Cabazon in Riverside County to the athletic field on 7th Street so her stepson could compete in a summer football scrimmage in Yucaipa. She had driven a few blocks to the Big 5 to purchase her stepson a mouth guard. She was parked in the parking lot there when she took her son, seven-month old Emmanuel, out of his car seat to change his diaper. She set him down on the backseat on the passenger side of the vehicle to change his diaper when she was attacked from behind.
“I fell on the floor, and when I got up, I couldn’t find my son,” she said.
She went into the Big 5 Sporting Goods store and inquired as to whether someone had come into the store with a small child. That was not the case, employees at the store said. The sheriff’s department, which serves as the police department in Yucaipa was summoned. Deputies were unable able to locate the baby in a search of the area, including the use of a department helicopter.
Deputies taped off the area around the Haro family vehicle and the suspected crime, while available deputies and detectives initiated interviews with potential witnesses. Investigators were unable to find any trace of the vehicle driven by the man believed to have abducted the boy.
Rebecca Haro had sustained facial trauma, including a black right eye.
According to the sheriff’s department, “Investigators from our specialized investigations division are continuing to investigate the reported kidnapping of a seven-month-old, after the child’s mother reported being attacked outside a retail store on Yucaipa Boulevard last night. K9 scent-tracking dogs were deployed, but the child was not located. No suspect information is available at this time. Updates will be provided as soon as they are ready for release. We appreciate the community’s understanding as we work around the clock to locate the victim.”
An amber alert was not put out for the child because, the department said, the circumstances of the case did not meet the criteria for an Amber Alert, insofar as there is no known suspect or reliable vehicle description. One member of the department conceded, nonetheless, that the matter is being investigated as a possible kidnapping.
Emmanuel Haro is described as about 21 pounds and 24 inches tall. He has brown hair, brown eyes and crossed eyes. He was last seen wearing a black Nike onesie.
If you have any information, please call 911 or Sheriff’s dispatch at 909-387-8313.