Modesto Women Arrested After Death Of 3-Year-Old With Burns, Bruises
MODESTO (CBS13) — Two women are behind bars charged with murdering a 3-year-old boy - one of the women being the boy's mother.
"I don't see how any parent could do that to anybody. How anybody could do that to a child. Not just the parents, but anybody. It's a sad thing," said Don Varela, with tears in his eyes.
Varela lives on Standiford Avenue in Modesto, where the boy lived with his mom. Varela says emergency crews responded to the 911 call on Wednesday night.
"We heard the ambulance come by. We heard the cops. There were a lot of sirens," he said.
"It's a very tough case," said Heather Graves in describing the nature of the case. She is with the Modesto Police Department.
Graves says Connie Escamilla, 24, called 911, when her three-year-old son, Gilbert, became unconscious Wednesday night.
Medical crews found a pulse and took the boy to a local hospital. He was later flown to Valley Children's Hospital in Madera in critical condition. The boy died Thursday morning.
Modesto police haven't released many details at this time as to the cause of death, only saying that the boy suffered burns, bruises and laceration to his body. Police indicate that the abuse may have been on-going.
Graves says detectives began an investigation Wednesday night after learning the extent of the boy's injuries. She says on Thursday, Escamilla was arrested for allegedly killing her son. Escamilla's fiancee, Kylie Beasly, 20, was booked on charges of murder and torture. Both women were booked into Stanislaus County Jail with no bail.
"We will do everything we can to present a strong case to the district attorney's office for prosecution," explained Graves.
Rosalie Clark was having a yard sale Friday afternoon, blocks from where the little boy lived. She says it all anyone was talking about.
"It just makes me sick to my stomach. Who could be so cruel?" said Clark.
Graves says this type of crime affects the whole community and they're working hard to get answers.
"It really does just affect us all, not just the family, but the community as well. Nobody likes to see anything like," said Graves.
Police say there is no evidence to suggest that drugs or alcohol were involved. Police would not comment on the boy's biological father at this time.
Escamilla's 7-year-old girl was also in the house at the time of the alleged murder. She was taken by Child Protective Services.
