A Signal Hill man is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday on charges stemming from the death of his live-in girlfriend’s 2-year- old son last summer.
Samuel Aguilar, 23, is charged with one felony count each of murder, child abuse and assault on a child causing death, along with a child abuse charge involving the woman’s year-old son. Aguilar is additionally charged with a felony count of injuring a girlfriend.
Prosecutors are expected to ask that Aguilar be jailed in lieu of $1.28 million bail.
His girlfriend, Jessica Rey Cereceres, 24, is charged with two felony counts of child abuse involving both children. She is set to be arraigned Aug. 27 at the Long Beach courthouse, and is jailed in lieu of $200,000 bail.
Aguilar and Cereceres were charged Monday following a yearlong examination of reports and evidence involving injuries to the two children, according to the District Attorney’s Office. The couple lived with the children in Signal Hill,
The 2-year-old boy, identified in the felony complaint as “Josue C.,” was pronounced dead Aug. 10 of last year after being taken to a hospital.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department launched an investigation into the boy’s death and discovered that the woman’s year-old son also had injuries to his body, according to the prosecution.
If convicted as charged, Aguilar could face a maximum of life in state prison, while Cereceres could face up to seven years and eight months behind bars, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
— City News Service