Dad charged in assault, sexual abuse of infant son - KMSP-TV

A 24-year-old Maplewood man is charged in connection with assaulting his 4-month-old baby – both physically and sexually. The charges were filed Tuesday by the Ramsey County Attorney's Office.

Errick Noe Rios is charged with a felony count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, two felony counts of third-degree assault and one felony count of domestic assault by strangulation in connection with the incident.

The criminal complaint states that Maplewood Police were called to a home on July 25 on the 1500 block of County Road B to check on the infant's welfare. They found Rios home with the baby covered in layers of blankets and clothing inside a hot and muggy bedroom. The baby had bruises on its face, a bite mark, scabs on its chest and back and finger marks and bruises on its belly.

Rios notified police he was holding the baby and tripped on a blanket, causing the bruising. He also said it caused him to mistakenly head butt the baby. He later admitted he struck his baby because it would not stop crying. He punched the infant in the mouth and picked him up by the torso hard enough to leave marks, he told investigators. Rios said to police that he and his wife have brought the baby for medical care in the past because of his abuse, and that it needed to stop.

Rios spoke with police and the Ramsey County Child Protection Agency the following day. He said he was frustrated with the baby on the night of the boy's birth. He said he hit the boy on four or five occasions out of anger and squeezed the baby's stomach. He also admitted to biting the baby's face and said he would put the baby's mouth over a faucet and turn it on in hopes of quieting him.

Rios would take the boy to public places to keep himself from another assault. He had a fear that his wife would leave him, it kept him from seeking help, he said.

Rios admitted to authorities Aug. 4 that he had also engaged in criminal sexual conduct with the infant. An examination showed the baby had three cracked ribs in addition to the bruising and scratching.

Rios faces more than 40 years in prison and $65,000 in fines if convicted on all charges.