West Chicago man charged with killing 3-month-old son

A West Chicago father who was wanted on a warrant alleging domestic battery is now accused of fatally beating his infant son.

Gustavo Torres-Medel, 25, was held Tuesday without bond in the DuPage County jail on first-degree murder charges.

Prosecutors said Torres-Medel fatally beat his 3-month-old son, Gustavo Jr., early Monday while baby-sitting him alone on the 200 block of West Brown Street. They said Torres-Medel grew incensed when the fussy baby refused his bottle and kept crying.

"The defendant admitted slapping the victim numerous times across both cheeks in a forward and backhand motion," Assistant State's Attorney Michael Pawl said in court documents. "The defendant also grabbed the victim underneath his arms and squeezed his torso hard. He shook him back and forth and threw the victim into a car seat so hard that the defendant said he heard the victim's head strike the car seat."

Authorities said Torres-Medel confessed in audio and videotaped statements to police. They said he also physically demonstrated how the child's injuries were inflicted.

Both Torres-Medel and the child's mother, Perla Salgado, work at the La Chiquita grocery store in West Chicago. Salgado, who lived with Torres-Medel, was at work at the time of the baby was injured.

Gustavo Jr., named after his father, was pronounced dead Monday afternoon at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield. He was born Jan. 12.

The father had an active warrant out for his arrest, court records showed. Police arrested him on Christmas Day 2007 on domestic battery charges on suspicion he punched Salgado in his former apartment on Kings Court, also in West Chicago.

Torres-Medel was released after he posted $300 cash as bail, but an arrest warrant was issued April 9, 2008 after he failed to appear in court.

Attempts to reach Salgado were unsuccessful Tuesday. Meanwhile, Torres-Medel is due back in court May 19 before DuPage Circuit Judge Kathryn Creswell for arraignment. If convicted, the defendant could face a possible death sentence.