Parents Find Boy in Girl's Closet. They're Now in Jail

The California adults allegedly restrained the teen and assaulted him
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 26, 2019 9:32 AM CDT
Parents Find Boy in Girl's Closet, End Up Charged With Hate Crime
The teen was hiding among the hangers.   (Getty Images)

Parents in California reportedly discovered a 17-year-old hiding in their 15-year-old daughter's closet on Thursday. What allegedly happened next has led to three adults being arrested Friday and hit with felony charges associated with committing a hate crime, kidnapping, and more. Police say the girl's relatives returned to the San Bruno home at 2:30am Thursday and "became irate and started assaulting" the teen, who they allegedly tied up using a rope, over the course of 30 minutes. The hate crime charges relate to allegations by the teen, who is black, that his race was a "motivating factor" of the attack. He claims the adults, all Hispanic, yelled racial slurs at him.

ABC News lists the suspects as the girl's mother, Haydee Arguello, and stepfather, Wilfredo Amaya, both 46; and her biological father, Luisandor Suarez, 49. Per CBS San Francisco, the boy was eventually untied and sought care for non-life-threatening injuries at a local hospital. The teen's older sisters tell KGO a different story, describing the parents as "so scared" to discover the boy and alleging the teen starting "kicking my stepfather and trying to kill him." They say he was only restrained over concerns for their own safety, and that nothing racist was said. The three adults are being held at San Mateo County jail without bail. The girl is in the custody of Child Protective Services. (More parents stories.)

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