Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Man charged in death of girlfriend’s 3-year-old son

Click to enlarge photo

Ramiro Camacho

Metro Police said a Las Vegas man faces child abuse charges after his girlfriend's 3-year-old son died Monday after suffering injuries in his care the previous night.

Ramiro Camacho, 34, was charged with two counts of child abuse with substantial bodily harm and one count of child neglect related to the death of Adrian Garcia.

According to an arrest report, Camacho was caring for six children while his girlfriend, Monique Rivera, went to work Sunday evening.

Camacho allegedly told the 3-year-old boy to take a shower after he began puking in the home, police said in the report.

Garcia, who Camacho told detectives knows how to take showers on his own, allegedly was found face down in the bath tub a while later, according to the arrest report.

Camacho emailed Rivera at work, saying "Come home, I'm scared. I need you here now," according to the arrest report.

Camacho said the boy had vomit coming out of his mouth and the shower was still running, but he didn't notice other injuries except a faded bruise on his left cheek, the arrest report alleges.

Police, however, noted in the report that Garcia had second-degree burns and bruises all over his face.

During more questioning, Camacho allegedly changed the story. He told police Garcia's sibling gave him the bruises earlier in the day. Camacho said he poured hot water over the boy in the shower to try to wake him, the arrest report alleges.

Camacho said he asked a neighbor to drive them to the hospital while he performed CPR on the child.

Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center staff told police Garcia suffered severe head trauma, according to the arrest report. The Clark County Coroner's Office hasn't determined his official cause and manner of death.

Child Protective Services took custody of the other children and police planned to interview them, according to the arrest report.

"Camacho's statements were inconsistent as his details of the incident changed numerous times, with no definitive explanation as to how Adrian received the injuries," police wrote in the report.

Camacho was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on Sunday, where he is being held on $30,000 bail, according to jail records.

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy