When police broke up a sex trafficking ring in Sunset Park back in November, they discovered the body of an infant encased in cement, sealed inside a Rubbermaid storage unit. At the time, police believed the infant died from lack of medical care denied by his mother's pimps. Today, the News reports that the boy was beaten to death.
The spokesman for the medical examiners office said that the cause of death was "battered child syndrome," and reported that 2-month of Carlos Santillana "suffered blunt impact injuries to his head, torso and extremities." Alleged ringleaders Domingo Salazar, 33, and Norma Mendez, 32, have been charged with forcing the boy's mother into prostitution weeks after the baby was born to pay off smuggling debts. Hopefully, they will be charged with a whole lot more.
