California parents charged with hate crime for kidnapping boy found hiding in teen daughter's closet, police say
The parents of a 15-year-old California girl are being charged with a hate crime after they allegedly kidnapped and abused their daughter's boyfriend after they found him hiding in the home, according to police.
On Thursday afternoon, the 17-year-old victim went to police to report that he'd been held against his will, assaulted and threatened by three people at a home in San Bruno, about 12 miles south of San Francisco, according to a news release by the San Bruno Police.
The victim was visiting the girl at her home when the family members arrived around 2:30 a.m. that morning, police said. They then "became irate and started assaulting" him, according to the release.
The suspects, which include the girl's mother, Haydee Arguello, 46, her stepfather, Wilfredo Amaya, 46, and her biological father, Luisandor Suarez, 49, allegedly restrained the teen using rope, held him against his will, threatened to kill him and assaulted him multiple times.
The girl's parents also allegedly yelled racial slurs throughout the attack, causing the teen, who is black, to believe his race "to be a motivating factor in the attack," police said. All of the suspects are of Hispanic descent, police said.
The teen's older sisters, Belkys Gomez and Katherine Gomez, alleged that the victim attacked their parents after they found him hiding in a bedroom closet, which is why they restrained him.
"They were so scared because they found someone in the closet," Belkys Gomez told ABC San Francisco affiliate KGO. "They jumped because everyone was sleeping and this guy started kicking my stepfather and trying to kill him."
Katherine Gomez told the station, "He punched her and then my stepdad, of course, is not going to let anyone hit his wife. They tried to stop him and he was acting very violent so they grabbed a rope to try to tie him down and ask him why he was at the house."
When asked by a KGO reporter whether their parents hurt the victim, Katherine Gomez replied, "No, they didn't," adding that the the accusations of racial slurs are "not true at all."
Neighbor Jorge Flores told KGO that he could hear the victim screaming in pain.
All three suspects were charged with multiple felonies relating to committing a hate crime, including kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and criminal threats, according to police. They were arrested Friday and are being held at the San Mateo County jail without bail, online records show.
It is unclear whether they have retained attorneys.
Child Protective Services has taken custody of the 15-year-old, KGO reported.
