10 Yr Old Child in Pet Cage 8 Hrs

April 11, 2006, 1:38AM
McAllen couple accused of caging child in pet crate


Associated Press

McALLEN ?- A South Texas couple was jailed on child abuse charges for allegedly placing the woman's 10-year-old son in a pet cage as punishment for stealing and later binding his hands and feet to a pole.

Alfredo Hernandez Jr., 29, and Veronica Pintor Marcos, 32, were being held Monday night in the Hidalgo County jail on $130,000 bond each. They're charged with felony injury to a child, child endangerment and unlawful restraint.

The 10-year-old escaped from his McAllen house Friday and reported the alleged abuse by his mother and stepfather to his neighbors, who notified police.

Child Protective Services has placed the couple's four children, also including a 5-year-old boy and two girls ages 3 and 12, in foster care, The (McAllen) Monitor reported in its Tuesday editions.

A jail official did not have a listing of lawyers for the defendants, and he would not allow either of them speak to a reporter on the telephone when contacted by The Associated Press.

McAllen police say Hernandez, with the consent of his wife, placed the boy in a dog kennel for about eight hours to punish him for stealing.

They also accuse Hernandez of using tape to bind the boy's hands and feet to a bamboo pole behind his back, and then leaving him facedown in a laundry room. The boy told police that he managed to free his feet three times, and each time Hernandez taped them again. On the fourth time, the boy escaped the house.

"They accused the boy of stealing something and they were trying to punish him for that, but of course the punishment doesn't fit," McAllen police Sgt. Joel Morales told the newspaper.

The boy suffered a cut and welts and complained of pain, according to a police report.

Hernandez and Pintor each face up to 40 years in prison and $30,000 in fines if convicted on all three counts.