Carmen Barahon, Nubia Barahona and Jorge Barahona
The father of a girl found dead in the back of a pest control truck on the side of Interstate 95 in West Palm Beach last month has been charged with her death.
Miami-Dade police said Monday that Jorge Barahona is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his 10-year-old adopted daughter.
Police said Barahona removed the girl from the bathroom where she had been tied up Feb. 11, brought her to his bedroom and beat her to death as she cried and screamed
Police said the girl's 10-year-old brother was present while the girl was beaten.
Images: Barahona Case Timeline
In a news release, police said that from January 2010 to February 2011 the girl and her twin brother were repeatedly beaten, tortured and "unlawfully caged." Police said they were locked in the only bathroom in the family home for days on end. Police said the children were bound and beaten repeatedly with objects.
At a news conference Monday afternoon, Miami-Dade Police Department Director James Loftus said this was one of the worst cases he had ever seen.
"This is, in my experience, one of the saddest commentaries on the human condition that I've ever seen," said Loftus. "It's depressing, it's sickening to think about the circumstances that led two people, working in concert, to perpetrate this kind of horror on their own children, adopted or not.
""Someone asked me yesterday, 'How do you characterize this behavior?' It's not human. It's sub-human," added Loftus. "This is not a normal, thank God, occurrence in our society.
"Barahona was charged with first-degree murder and seven counts of aggravated child abuse Monday.
Carmen Barahona, the children's adoptive mother, made her first court appearance during the weekend. She was charged with first-degree murder and seven counts of aggravated child abuse in connection with the girl's death.
The girl was found dead in a plastic bag, covered in a chemical in the back of the truck on Valentine's Day. Jorge Barahona was on the ground near the vehicle.
Her brother was found in the front seat of the truck, critically burned by the chemical. He was recently released from the hospital.
“If there ever was a case where the death penalty would apply, it would seem to apply in this one,” said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle.
A judge Monday morning ordered the release of additional Florida Department of Children and Families documents about the alleged abuse of the girl and her twin brother. Among them, paperwork filled out by the twins' case worker, Andrea Fleary, after a Feb. 10 call to the DCF abuse hotline.
A relative reported that the girl and her twin brother were bound with tape and forced to stand in a bathtub. Another complaint from someone who knew the family alleged the boy had a facial injury that required stitches, but was only treated with a piece of adhesive tape.
Previous Stories:
- March 7, 2011: Mother Of Girl Found Dead In Truck Charged With Murder
- March 4, 2011: Police: Girl In Toxic Truck Likely Died In Miami
- March 1, 2011: Teacher Warned Of Abuse Years Before Girl Found Dead In Truck
- March 1, 2011: Caller Details Abuse To Twins In Barahona Case
- February 25, 2011: Group Assigned To Barahona Review Meets For First Time
- February 25, 2011: DCF Reports: Barahona Investigator Mishandled Other Cases
- February 25, 2011: SUV Crashes Into Dump Truck In Wellington
- February 23, 2011: Boy Doused In Chemical Expected To Be Released Friday
- February 23, 2011: Twins' Biological Father: 'They Took My Children'
- February 22, 2011: Lawyer: Barahona's Wife Filing For Divorce
- February 22, 2011: Report: Girl Found In Truck Had History Of Sex, Other Abuse
- February 22, 2011: DCF To Conduct Internal Review Of Response To Twins' Abuse
- February 18, 2011: Father Of Twins In Truck Faces Attempted Murder Charge
- February 18, 2011: Custody Revoked For Mother Of Girl Who Saw Twins' Abuse
- February 18, 2011: Hospital Staff Recalls Condition Of Burned Boy In Truck
- February 18, 2011: Cause Of Death Determined For Girl Found In Truck
- February 18, 2011: Road Ranger: 'When I Saw That Little Boy, My Heart Dropped'
- February 17, 2011: Father Of Girl Found Dead In Truck Refuses To Face Judge
- February 17, 2011: Police: Body In Truck Identified As Driver's Daughter
- February 17, 2011: Investigators: Driver's Children Tied Up In Bathroom
- February 15, 2011: Man Charged After Body Found In Truck Along I-95
- February 15, 2011: Dead Body Remains In Truck; Identity Still Not Known
- February 15, 2011: Investigators Find Body In Truck On Side Of I-95
- February 14, 2011: Firefighters Exposed To Substance While Treating Victims
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