"My daddy ate my eyes"...
On 28 April, a horrific event occurred that shocked the town of Bakersfield, California. Police were called to a home for a disagreement between a man and his wife; less than an hour and a half later, however, they were called back by a neighbor who reported that she had found a naked little boy cowering behind a dresser.
The child's face was swollen, and his eyes were shut. There were bite marks all over his face and hands. When he came to fifteen minutes later, that is when the truth was revealed: he was missing his left eye, and his right eye was mutilated.
Angelo Mendoza Sr., 34, allegedly bit out his child's left eye; wheelchair bound from being stabbed in the back in 2004, Mendoza was found in a nearby backyard of a vacant home, mutilating his legs with a hatchet. In the initial report from the police, he claimed the "Mexican Mafia" had done this to him, and it appeared he was trying to attempt to chain himself to a lamp pole. The police realized he was under the influence of the drug, PCP, which has become ever-more popular in Bakersfield due to its cheap price.
The child's mother, who only gave her first name as Desirae, had left after the argument between her and her husband, leaving behind her son who was "afraid of his father;" she did not think the child was in danger, since Mendoza had never hurt the child before.
When the child was taken to a hospital near his home, he told a neighbor, "My daddy bit my hands and face. My daddy ate my eyes!"
The case was put under a gag order, in which no one involved is allowed to make comments on the investigation. Mendoza missed his court appearance due to being in the hospital from his self-inflicted wounds; the nurses said he was doing fine in healing.
Mendoza is being charged with mayhem, torture, and child cruelty. He could get life in prison, but there is a possibility he could get out on parole.
