Prosecutors ask public's 'patience' in release of details about Cabazon baby
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Couple accused in death of baby boy due back in court
Medical equipment scams target older Californians
By City News Service
By Suzanne Potter, Public News Service
A misleading flyer left at a food bank in Bakersfield advertises a nonexistent "mobile monitoring program." | Photo courtesy of Kern County HICAP Rebecca Renee Haro and Jake Mitchell Haro. | Photos courtesy of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department
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Cabazon couple accused in the death of their 7-monthold toddler, now missing for three weeks, were due back in court Thursday for arraignment on murder and other charges. Jake Mitchell Haro, 32, and Rebecca Rene Haro, 41, were arrested last month following a multi-agency investigation into the disappearance of baby Emmanuel. Along with murder, both are charged with filing a false police report. They made their initial joint court appearance on Aug. 26, when Riverside County Superior Court Judge Gary Polk appointed them a public defender and scheduled their arraignment for Sept. 4 at the Riverside Hall of Justice. Each defendant is being held in lieu of $1 million bail — Jake Haro at the
Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, his wife at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside. Last week, the District Attorney's Office appealed for "patience" in release of details tied to the case. "We understand how deeply the community and media care about baby Emmanuel and are eager for information," the DA's office stated. "However, there has been a significant amount of misinformation circulating in the media and on social media, which can be confusing and frustrating for everyone. Spreading false information or rushing to conclusions can unintentionally hinder the investigation and impact court proceedings." District Attorney Mike Hestrin said in a news briefing on Aug. 27 it was being "abused over time"
that caused the baby's death. "We believe Emmanuel was severely abused ... and because of the abuse, he succumbed to those injuries," he said. The victim's body has not been located. The couple were arrested on Aug. 22 following a San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department investigation. In a jailhouse interview with one news outlet, Jake Haro denied any involvement in the infant's vanishing, insisting he was cooperating with investigators. "There was forensic data from the crime scene," San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said last week. "That's how we learned the jurisdiction where this crime occurred (Riverside County). Forensically, there were a number of things we See Baby murder Page 31
were able to prove up." He did not disclose specifics. Hestrin said the tot's death was preventable, blaming a failure in the criminal justice system that enabled Jake Haro to remain free on probation after pleading guilty in a prior child abuse case involving his ex-wife and another infant, Carolina. In 2023, Haro admitted a child cruelty charge, but made his plea directly to the court, avoiding negotiations with prosecutors. Hestrin said the prosecution had wanted prison for the defendant's extensive abuse of the girl, which resulted in multiple broken ribs, a fractured skull and a brain hemorrhage, leaving her permanently bed-ridden. "It was an outrageous
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cams involving false claims for medical equipment are spreading across California, according to experts in Medicare fraud. Sometimes scammers offer free equipment in exchange for your Medicare number, even if you do not need it. They bill Medicare and potentially get paid. Carolina Oehler, program specialist for the Kern County Department of Aging and Adult Services, said it not only drains money from the Medicare program, people can be denied the equipment in the future. "When they actually need the device and the doctor orders it, the supplier is going to try to bill Medicare," Oehler explained. "Medicare is going to deny the claim, because there's already a claim for the same thing that was billed." Sometimes the scammer will call or send a postcard or flyer offering incentives such
as free cleaning, cooking, protein milkshakes, medical equipment, transportation or anything to get people to give up their Medicare number. Some even set up storefronts and pay doctors kickbacks to fabricate orders for medical equipment. Oehler noted some people have received multiple boxes of braces they never requested, out of the blue. "You should send the box back, contact your doctor to ask them if they prescribed the item and then contact Medicare to make sure that claims were not submitted for items that were not ordered by your doctor," Oehler outlined. Medicare can then flag the claim for fraud and remove it from your record. Help for this sort of issue is available via the Senior Medicare Patrol on the website of the nonprofit California Health Advocates, or you can call 1-800-Medicare.