The father of the missing infant, Emmanuel Haro, excelled in a child abuse course and received commendation for his parenting abilities before his 7-month-old baby vanished.

Emmanuel remains missing and is believed to be deceased following his mother’s report of a kidnapping incident from a store parking lot on August 17. Both parents are facing charges for his murder.

On Friday, it emerged that Jake Haro was mandated to enroll in a child abuse intervention program due to a suspended sentence from a prior 2018 child abuse case, which resulted in his daughter, then 10 months old, suffering permanent disabilities.

The New York Post disclosed that two counselors who oversaw Jake Haro commended his conduct in their evaluations. On July 18, 2024, Counselor Steven DeHay highlighted Jake’s attentiveness, politeness, and positive interactions with class peers and instructors.

According to the report, “He seems to have developed self-awareness and understanding of his approach to parenting. It appears he has gained from the required class/program.”

Jake Haro got perfect score in child abuse class

DeHay awarded Jake a perfect score of 7 out of 7 for his attitude, particularly in “child abuse” and gave him high ratings in areas like “child welfare” and “parenting skills.”

Mirna Johnson, another counselor, said in a 2023 report that Jake Haro “reported that his discipline consists of logical and natural consequences, and he offers limited choices to teach decision making and democracy.”

“Mr. Haro shared that his children are motivated by positive reinforcement and that his limits are stable and only increase with the maturity of his children,” she wrote.

Johnson declared Jake’s likelihood of abusing a child to be “low,” per the report.

Jake and Rebecca Haro plead not guilty to murder

Jake Haro and his wife, Rebecca, the mother of Emmanuel, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges of murder and filing a false police report. A preliminary hearing is set for September 17. 

Jake Haro has stated that his wife, Rebecca, is innocent and loves her children.

Emmanuel’s body has not yet been found despite Jake Haro joining investigators for a search in California.