Dramatic video captured cops hauling away the alleged killer parents of missing California 7-month-old Emmanuel Haro about a week after they claimed the infant was kidnapped — a twisted tale authorities said was a lie.
Jake and Rebecca Haro were arrested by a fleet of cops at their Cabazon home and slapped with murder charges early Friday after the baby’s mother fiercely maintained her son was snatched outside a sporting goods store in Yucaipa on Aug. 14, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said.
But deputies confirmed Friday night that a kidnapping never happened — and they now believe the sweet boy with brown eyes and a full head of brown hair is dead.
“During the investigation thus far, numerous interviews have been conducted, search warrants have been served, digital and electronic evidence has been collected and closely analyzed,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement.
“Based on the evidence, investigators determined a kidnapping in Yucaipa did not occur. It is believed Emmanuel is deceased, and the search to recover his remains is ongoing.”
Police stormed the murder suspects’ desert home in tanks, trucks and cruisers, cuffing the disheveled and eerily emotionless couple — both of whom looked like they’d just rolled out of bed — separately and hauling them away to a local lockup, according to footage released by police.
The alleged 41-year-old homicidal mom — dressed in black shorts, a white tank top and flip-flops with her hair in a messy bun — was the first to be taken into custody.
Her 32-year-old barefoot husband, clad in striped shorts and a white shirt, then stumbled his way into the police cruiser after his arrest, the video showed.
The shady pair were dragged off to jail just days after police said there were inconsistencies in Rebecca’s claims as the probe into the couple ramped up, and the sheriff’s office refused to rule out foul play.
The missing child case sparked a furious search for little Emmanuel and drew nationwide attention after the child’s mother told police she was assaulted and knocked out by an unknown man outside a store in Yucaipa while changing the tot’s diaper.
Rebecca said when she regained concentration, her little boy was gone.
But when investigators questioned her initial statement, the suspected killer duo — who begged for their son’s safe return in interviews last week — stopped cooperating with police, the law enforcement agency said.
During the search leading up to the bust, authorities served several search warrants at the Haro home as investigators reviewed troves of surveillance footage.
Police confirmed no additional arrests have been made, and there are no other suspects.
They were both booked at Riverside County Jail and are being held without bail.
“The circumstances surrounding this investigation are tragic, and we will continue to search for Emmanuel,” Sheriff Shannon Dicus said in a statement, thanking all who were involved in the probe.
“I trust our justice system will hold the parents accountable.”
