(credit: Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 24-year-old Maplewood man was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting a baby boy, authorities said.
Errick Noe Rios pleaded guilty in August to first-degree criminal sexual assault. His victim was a then-4-month-old baby, who, when examined, had three cracked ribs as well as bruises and scratches.
Rios was initially charged with multiple felony charges: one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, two counts of third-degree assault and one count of domestic assault by strangulation. He only pleaded guilty to the criminal sexual conduct charge.
According to a criminal complaint, Maplewood Police were called to a home in July to check on the welfare of the baby. When authorities arrived, Rios let them in. They found the baby covered in layers of blankets and clothes 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 his stomach.
Rios told police he was holding the baby when he tripped on a blanket, causing the bruising. He also said he accidentally head-butted the baby. He later said he hit the baby because he would not stop crying. He also admitted to punching the infant in the mouth and picking him up by the torso hard enough to leave marks, the complaint said.
Rios told police that he and his wife have brought the baby to the hospital in the past because of his aggressive behavior and that it needed to stop.
The next day, Rios spoke with police and the Ramsey County Child Protection Agency. He told them 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.
Rios also told authorities he would take the boy to public places to prevent himself from assaulting the baby. He said the fear he had that his wife would leave him kept him from seeking help, police said.
