Alex Trelinski
AN ELCHE couple will spend the rest of the lives behind bars for the murder of their two-year-old son in September 2018.
The duo were convicted by a jury on September 6, with the judge now handing down the sentences which include paying €220,000 in compensation.
Aaron’s death came as a tragic culmination to a systematic series of assaults that he endured.
The fatal attack saw his stepfather, 29-year-old Jose Antonio Vasquez, slap and punch the young child before slamming him against a surface.
He then squeezed Aaron’s neck so hard that he lost consciousness.
The boy’s condition was so serious that the couple took him to the Baix Vinapolo Hospital.
He was transferred to a specialist unit at Alicante General Hospital, where he died four days later.
The trial revealed a horrific catalogue of physical attacks by the stepfather with the mother, 27-year-old Cristina Jiminez Moraleda, doing absolutely nothing to stop it.
An autopsy showed that Aaron suffered many injuries resulting in bruises and fractures over a period of time.
After last month’s murder convictions, the Alicante Provincial Court judge sentenced the couple to spend the rest of their lives in jail, though the sentences can be reviewed in the future.
They were also given three-year terms for habitual abuse.
The couple will also have to pay compensation of €150,000 to Aaron’s biological father and €70,000 to his paternal grandmother.
In addition to that, they have also been landed with a €7,000 bill for the medical care provided to Aaron.
The sentences and fines can be appealed before the Valencian Superior Court.
