Emmanuel Haro disappearance: Police seize father's car in search for missing 7-month-old
The car, which belongs to Emmanuel Haro's father Jake Haro, was "collected for evidence processing," Mara Rodriguez, public information officer for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department (SBCSD), confirmed to USA TODAY on Aug. 20.
"Investigators have not ruled out anyone's involvement and are following up on all leads and tips," Rodriguez said.
SBCSD said in a release on Aug. 20 that Jake Haro has retained an attorney, but detectives would still "welcome their cooperation as we continue efforts to locate Emmanuel."
Rebecca Haro, Emmanuel's mother, said he was kidnapped outside a retail store in Yucaipa, California, on Aug. 14 before 8 p.m. local time, according to a release from SBCSD.
However, police said they found "inconsistencies" in Rebecca Haro's statements and have not ruled out foul play.
Possible sighting of missing infant reported, police say
Rodriguez confirmed to USA TODAY on Aug. 20 that investigators have received a report of a possible sighting of the infant.
The sighting was in Kern County, but no information as to where in the area has been provided to investigators, Rodriguez said.
In an update shortly after 2 p.m. ET on Aug. 20, SBCSD said "investigators have followed up on the reported sightings" but Emmanuel Haro has not been located.
Kern County is about 180 miles north of the San Bernardino area, including Yucaipa, where Haro was last seen.
Cabazon, where Haro is from, is about 20 more miles away from Yucaipa.
What happened to 7-month-old Emmanuel Haro? Mother said he was kidnapped
Rebecca Haro told news outlets, including KCAL and KTLA, that the family was in Yucaipa for another child's football practice. She said she went to a sporting goods store to buy a mouthguard for her other child when she realized her infant's diaper needed to be changed.
She said she was changing her son's diaper outside her car when a man assaulted her and knocked her unconscious. When she regained consciousness, the infant was gone, Rebecca Haro told police.
In interviews with local TV stations, Rebecca Haro appeared with a black eye, which she said she got from the assault.
"I took him out of the car seat and laid him on the chair. I had his diapers right here, and someone said, 'Hola.' I couldn't even turn. I don't remember nothing," Rebecca Haro told the outlets.
USA TODAY has been unable to reach Rebecca and Jake Haro for comment.
Police continue to investigate baby's disappearance. Here's what has happened so far.
Investigators said in an Aug. 18 update they have "conducted extensive searches" in both Yucaipa and Cabazon.
"Investigators have served several search warrants at the Haro home and utilized K9s to aid in the investigation," SBCSD said in a release.
Officials also said they are reviewing surveillance video from areas of interest.
On Aug. 16, SBCSD said in a release that investigators have not ruled out foul play in Emmanuel's disappearance.
Multiple people, including Rebecca and Jake Haro, sat for interviews with investigators.
"During those interviews, Rebecca was confronted with inconsistencies in her initial statement and declined to continue with the interview," the sheriff's department said in the release.
Emmanuel Haro was last seen wearing a black Nike onesie. He is about 24 inches tall, has brown hair and brown eyes and is cross-eyed, according to police.
Anyone with information should call Sheriff's Dispatch at 909-387-3545.
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
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an hour ago
- USA Today
The red flags you need to know to avoid being conned
On a special episode (first released on Aug. 20, 2025) of The Excerpt podcast: Is there a way to reliably spot a con artist? Jonathan Walton says there is. He explains how in his new book, "Anatomy of a Con Artist," on bookshelves now. Hit play on the player below to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript beneath it. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text. Podcasts: True crime, in-depth interviews and more USA TODAY podcasts right here Taylor Wilson: Hello and welcome to a special episode of USA TODAY's The Excerpt. I'm Taylor Wilson. Con Artists are lurking all over. It might be your neighbor or coworker, or just a stranger that steps in when you're desperate for help. They prey on vulnerabilities and can be deceptively charming, but how do you spot them? A new book explores just that and gives some tips from someone who found himself at the heart of a con artist manipulation. Here to tell me about his story and some of his tips is author Jonathan Walton, whose new book, Anatomy of a Con Artist is out now. Thanks for joining me, Jonathan. Jonathan Walton: Thank you so much for having me. It's a pleasure to meet you, a pleasure to be here. Taylor Wilson: A pleasure to have you on. So let's just start with the origins of your experience with a con artist, if you don't mind. It all seems to have started around this swimming pool drama at your apartment complex, correct? Jonathan Walton: Yes, we have this beautiful Club Med style swimming pool, and we lost it through no fault of our own. The building was in an uproar, 444 units, so probably 800 or 900 residents angry, wanted the pool back. I take it upon myself. And this is the kind of person I am. And this is what my con artist who weaponized against me. I discovered years later. I take it upon myself to post flyers up, galvanize all the residents, get them together. I want to write this wrong. I'm kind of a do-gooder. I have been my whole life. So little did I know that that flyer that I posted up simply read, "Hey, miss the pool? Want to get it back? Let's band together and do something about it," that was all the information my con artists needed to get into my life, to get into my heart, and to scam me out of close to a hundred thousand dollars over the course of four years. Taylor Wilson: I mean, what happened next? You don't have to give away the entire book here, but how did things unravel and just progress from there? Jonathan Walton: Well, yeah, the book is so much more than my case. I've investigated hundreds of con artists over the past eight years. Because after I put mine in jail, even after police turned me away, and I show people how to do that in the book, my case blew up in the press. And I started getting contacted by hundreds and hundreds of victims of other artists telling me I inspired them, asking, begging for my help. So without knowing any better, I started helping. Some people play golf on the weekends, I hunt con artists. So I started investigating all these cases. But with regard to my case, that's how she got into my life, my con artist, Mayer Smith, that's the name she gave me, not her real name. And again, I want to punch myself in the face even saying this out loud, but it's the truth. I was helping an Irish heiress get her inheritance. But it's so much more complicated and nuanced than that. She quickly became like a sister to me. At the time I was going through stuff with my family. I'd come out as gay. I hadn't been home for Christmas in eight years. I was kind of disowned. She used that as an emotional in into my psyche. She said that she was disowned too by her family back in Ireland because they're trying to get her disinherited, and she waved all the red flags that she was a con artist. I just didn't know what they were, and I fell for all of them. She would show me texts and emails from her cousins, Fintan, and Dermot, and Tristan, and her uncle Patridge Clark, and there's this 25 million Euro inheritance, and he dies. And she's using the red flag of technology that I write about in the book, showing me digital screens, showing me her phone. How many times has someone held up their phone and said, "Hey, look what so-and-so just texted." Did you ever think it wasn't so-and-so, that it was some character this person invented to sell you a story? No, no one thinks that, but you should. I fell for all of them. And eventually, very quickly, I loved her like a sister. I loved her as much as any gay man can love a woman. And we were ending phone calls with I love you, I love you, because we were two discarded souls here in Los Angeles. Our families didn't want us, so we kind of clung together. And people ask me all the time, "How does someone like you, you're a smart guy, how did you get conned?" And I say this again and again in the book, "Con artists don't outsmart you. Con artists out feel you." They use your emotions. They tap into this emotional need you have for something. And once you're making decisions with your heart and not your head, you're as good as conned. Taylor Wilson: Well, we'll get to some of those red flags because I think they're pretty fascinating. I just want to get a sense of who you turned to for help initially. Did you find there were even resources on this topic when you were going through it? Jonathan Walton: Yes and no, but mainly, no. I started reading voraciously a lot of books about artists, and they all kind of felt like they were victim shaming. All the writers of these other books are like... It was in between the lines victim shaming. One even admits in the second chapter of a bestseller, I'm not going to name the name, but it offended me. The writer writes, "Well, I've never been conned, and I don't know any artist personally." And I'm like, well, la-di-da for you. Well, let me tell you, and I write this in the book, here's some news from the front lines. Con artists are everywhere. And the only reason you don't know a con artist is a con artist is because they haven't conned you yet, but they're probably conning other people you know. It's embarrassing to admit you fell for a con. And they use another red flag I write about, the TMI technique. You meet a con artist, they tell you a lot of personal details about themselves very quickly. They tell you their deep, dark secrets for two reasons. Number one, it makes you think, ah, this person must really trust me. And then number two, you think, well, I can trust them. And they start to extract your deep, dark secrets from you. Only thing, their secrets are fake. Yours are real. So by the time they get your money, you don't want to go to police because you don't want your deep, dark secrets ending up in a police report, or court records, or court transcripts. So that's how they get you to stay silent, and your silence enables them to con the other person, and the other person, and the other person. Taylor Wilson: Well, you touched on police earlier, Jonathan. I mean, what role do police play here? I know you wrote about several notable counter-artist instances where the victim really had to, is it fair to say go above and beyond to prove they were being victimized? Is there any critical flaw to how police go about this? How do you see police in this conversation Jonathan Walton: When you go to police... Police initially turned me away. I went and told them I got conned. They said, it's not a crime because I gave her the money. And there's the inclination to believe they must be correct. They got the uniform, they got the badge. They must know what they're talking about, but they don't. The thing of it is law enforcement is overwhelmed. They have murders, and robberies, and rapes to deal with. They have people lying in pools of blood calling on them to help. So when you come in crying, "Boohoo, I got conned," your case is relegated, nine out of 10 times they will not take a police report. And they send you on your way and say, "Go pursue this. Go hire a lawyer and sue them. Go to the civil court system." But listen, anything, in most states, over a thousand dollars taken based on lies or deceit is a felony. It is a crime punishable by years in jail. You just can't go to police willy-nilly. You got to build a case. You have to go in there with a narrative, with an affidavit, with witness statements, with tons of evidence, that you have to pull a Vanna White, and present the evidence, and tell the story. You have to be prepared. You have to be rehearsed. You can't just be boohoo, because they will turn you away. They turned me away, but I pushed back. And in the book, I show victims how to push. Taylor Wilson: Back. Well, I am not going to ask you to give away all the red flags that you outline in this book, but can you share a couple with our listeners? What major ones that you want to outline here? Jonathan Walton: I would say the top three red flags... Now, individually, each red flag doesn't mean you're dealing with a con artist necessarily, but when they start to add up, two, three, four red flags, be suspicious and consider cutting ties. Red flag number one, by far. Every con artist will enter your life, most likely offering to help you. Who doesn't love a helper? Right? A stranger, a new neighbor, a new boyfriend, new girlfriend, new co-worker. They show up. They quickly figure out what your problem is, and they offer to help you. So you're naturally going to be grateful. You're naturally going to love them. You're naturally going to let them in your life. Who doesn't love a helper? So be suspicious. Red flag number two, stories from faraway places. Every professional con artist today will snow you with stories from faraway places. Why? Because it gives them credentials. It gives them legitimacy. And stories from faraway places are hard to prove false. So human nature being what it is, if you can't prove something false, you just think it must be true. Another huge red flag, I call it in the book, drama, drama, drama. You meet someone who turns out to be a con artist, but you don't know. So they got you. They're helping you. They're too kind, too quick. They're snowing you with stories from faraway places. Keep in mind, these people are infinitely charismatic. They're fun to be with. They're lovable. They seem so kind. They're very educated, and that's what they want. But then the drama starts, right? If you've got any drama in your life, they will create more drama. And it's all lies. If you've got a boyfriend you're trying to avoid, they'll say, "Hey, I saw your boyfriend outside your house. He was parked outside your house." That's not true, but if you are the woman or the man scared of the boyfriend outside your house, you immediately like, "Oh my God, I need help." And once you have that kind of reaction to drama, you're so much more easy to manipulate. Because when you're not thinking with your head, thinking with your heart, or worse, you're thinking out of fear, con artists don't outsmart you, they out feel you. And fear is a heck of a feeling and makes you very malleable. So yeah, those are, I would say the top three red flags con artists use to trick money out of their marks. Taylor Wilson: Well, for folks who maybe have missed some of those early red flags, what advice would you give for people in the midst of their own artists nightmares? Who should they turn to? What should maybe their first steps be? Jonathan Walton: If the money has exchanged hands, that's the crime. If you are in the midst of a con... And again, I have this fantasy frequently. Knowing what I know now, if I met Mayer, my con artist, would I know she's a con artist? And the answer is, yeah, within the first 20 minutes of talking to her. Because she was just waving all the flags, the stories from faraway places, the offer to help, the too kind too quick, the drama, drama, drama. She was waving them all. I would've spotted her quickly. If you are in the midst of a con and the con artist doesn't know that you know, start recording the phone calls, start getting video and audio, start gathering your evidence. Because you need that for police. When you go to police, the minute the con artist is outed, and mine did this to me, they all flip the script. They all make authorities think initially, you are the bad person, they're the good person. You are the one victimizing them. A month before the criminal trial of my con artist, and this is how brilliant she is, hats off. I'm a producer here in LA. I admire her creativity. As sickening as it is, she is a brilliant creative woman. So I've been pursuing this case for two years, and finally I'm going to have my day in court. A month before the trial, she files a restraining order against me. And I only find out about it because I got a lawyer's advertisement in the mail. This restraining order was not served. And if it's not served, it doesn't exist yet, but it's coming. And luckily I got the ad in the mail. I'm like, "Restraining order?" And I look it up online and I'm like, oh my God, she filed a restraining order. So I bring it to the prosecutor thinking he's going to help me. The prosecutor who's charged her with stealing from me, with grand theft. And he says, "There's nothing I can do." He says, "If a judge approves this restraining order, you will not be allowed in the courtroom." And I just turned white. I'm like, this is her checkmate move. He's like, "But don't worry. We can let you testify over video." I'm like, "well, what's a jury going to think? I'm too violent for the courtroom, so I'm doing testimony over video?" Like, "My case is sunk. This doesn't help my case." He's like, "Yeah, it really doesn't. This is a problem, but there's nothing I can do. This is a civil matter." So I hire a lawyer and the lawyer tells me, "Just don't get served." And I'm like, "What do you mean?" He's like, "Do you have a back way in?" I'm like, "I'm a gay guy. Of course I have a back way in." He's like, "Just don't get served." So I don't answer the door. I come and go through the back way. And sure enough, just like he predicted, off-duty deputies in uniform pounding on my door at all hours trying to serve me this bogus restraining order. But thankfully, the time ran out. The trial started, I hadn't been served the restraining order so I got to testify in court. And she was convicted and sentenced to five years in jail before she could file that bogus restraining order before a judge could approve it. But listen, nine times out of 10 when there's a woman filing a restraining order against a man, it's a no-brainer for a judge. He just approves it. That was a brilliant move on her part, but thank God I figured out a way out of it. Taylor Wilson: Wow. Well, years later, Jonathan, this might be a difficult question, but I'm just curious how you think and feel about this case looking back, and do you forgive Mayer at all years later? Jonathan Walton: I do forgive... You see, here's the thing. And I know you're going to think I'm crazy, but I've investigated a lot of these cases and this is how I feel. These aren't people as we understand people to be. I've spent a lot of time interviewing an FBI criminal profiler, Candice DeLong, amazing woman. And she confirmed, most con artists, if not all, are psychopaths. They're not like us. They don't have any feeling. They will destroy your life, walk away, and destroy another life, and destroy... They don't care. They don't care. Mayer, my con artists used her own children in her scams. She pretended to have cancer for myriad reasons. When she was in high school, I heard from a guy she dated in high school, she would date college guys, and tell them she was pregnant, and needed money for an abortion. And they all gave her money. Artists aren't people as you understand people to be. So I haven't really forgiven her because I don't even consider her a person. I've forgiven myself. I get why this all happened. It was meant to make me better, and it was meant, I believe, to help me shine a light on them so the world can see, and hopefully save untold numbers of people from getting conned. I don't hate her. She's like a shark. You can't hate a shark for moving through the water and eating whatever it sees. That's what they were built to do. Con artists were built to scam anyone and everyone, so the quicker you can identify them, the quicker you can just get out of their way so they can go onto the next. Taylor Wilson: Jonathan, it was a fascinating read. Thanks for hopping on. Jonathan Walton: Thanks so much for reading it. I appreciate that. Taylor Wilson: Thanks to our senior producers, Shannon Rae Green and Kaely Monahan for their production assistance. Our executive producer is Laura Beatty. Let us know what you think of this episode by sending a note to podcasts@ Thanks for listening. I'm Taylor Wilson. I'll be back tomorrow morning with another episode of USA TODAY's The Excerpt.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Ohio man accused of flinging sex toy at 12-year-old girl at WNBA game faces charges
Police in New York announced the arrest of a WBNA fan who allegedly threw a sex toy toward the court during a game last month and hit a 12-year-old girl. The New York City Police Department reported Charles Burgess, 32, of Dayton, Ohio, was booked into jail Aug. 20 on two counts of assault in connection with the attack. According to information released to USA TODAY on Aug. 21, police had been searching for the assault suspect since Aug. 5, when the incident took place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. No major injuries were reported by the NYPD. The agency reported the girl suffered pain in her leg after being hit by the object but was not hospitalized, police said. Opinion: I'm a crypto bro who throws sex toys at WNBA games. Man who threw sex toy at basketball game located Witnesses told police that about 8:45 p.m. ET an unidentified person threw an object, which struck the girl in the right leg at the arena. The person then fled on foot, police said. Following the incident, police had asked for the public's assistance in identifying the suspect. Police said officers arrested Burgess at the 78th Precinct this week. It was not immediately known whether Burgess had obtained an attorney to represent him in the case. Sex toys being thrown at WNBA games In response to the incident, the WNBA released a statement about arena safety. 'The safety of everyone in our arenas remains a top priority," the WNBA statement reads. "We are working closely with local and federal law enforcement to pursue all appropriate actions − including arrest and prosecution with felony charges where applicable − against anyone engaged in this conduct or otherwise involved in sponsoring this reckless and unacceptable behavior.' In addition to Aug. 5, there have been at least seven incidents during which a sex toy has been thrown at WNBA games in July and August, with four reaching the court during live game action. At least two other arrests stemming from the incidents also took place, USA TODAY previously reported. Contributing: Scooby Axson Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ohio man accused of throwing sex toy at girl at WNBA game arrested Solve the daily Crossword
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Lil Nas X arrested, hospitalized after reports of possible overdose, police say
Lil Nas X was hospitalized after his arrest in Los Angeles. The "Old Town Road" rapper, 26, and two-time Grammy winner – whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill – was arrested just after 6 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 21, according to Los Angeles Sheriffs Department inmate records. In a statement to USA TODAY, the Los Angeles Police Department said that around 6 a.m., officers responded to the 11100 block of Ventura Blvd. for a man walking in the street. Upon arriving, police said "the suspect charged at officers and was taken into custody." The department did not confirm the identity of the man in the statement. "He was transported to a local hospital for a possible overdose and placed under arrest for battery on a police officer," the statement continued. USA TODAY reached out to reps for Lil Nas X for comment. The social media sensation's Instagram page has also been scrubbed except for 11 posts. One of Hollywood's most high-profile LGBTQ+ stars in the music industry, known for his eccentric forms of music promotion and signature humor, Lil Nas X has receded from the heights of his past superstardom in recent years. Lil Nas X jokes from hospital bed amid face paralysis: 'I can't even laugh right' In 2018, he broke out with his popular country-tinged single "Old Town Road" after dropping out of college. The track featured a buzzy remix with genre patriarch Billy Ray Cyrus, and the collaboration later became the longest-running No. 1 song in Billboard Hot 100 history. Two other Hot 100 No. 1s followed, "Industry Baby" with fellow rapper Jack Harlow and the solo "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)." The singer released his aptly-titled debut album "Montero" in 2021. He recently released the EP "Days Before Dreamboy" in late March, ahead of the release of his upcoming second studio album "Dreamboy," which is expected to drop later this year. He also boasts 11 career Grammy nominations. But earlier this year, the "That's What I Want" hitmaker faced health struggles. He posted an Instagram video of himself from a hospital bed late in April, telling his followers he "lost control of the right side" of his face. "This is me doing a full smile by the way," he said in the video, laughing in disbelief. "I can't even laugh right, bro. Oh my God!" He then joked about his condition on his Instagram stories, but assured fans he was OK. "Stop being sad for me!" he wrote. "Imma look funny for a lil bit but that's it," he said, adding crying emojis. Contributing: Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY
