Arizona man gets life in prison for starving son

A Tucson man will spend the rest of his life in prison for starving his son to death.

A jury found 50-year-old Martin Barreras guilty of first degree murder and child abuse in August. On Monday, a judge sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Pima County prosecutors say Barreras and his wife, Raquel, refused to feed their three-year-old son. They say the couple also denied him any sort of human contact.

They also say Raquel Barreras created a torture chamber for the boy.

A jury also found her guilty of murder and child abuse. She’ll also serve life in prison without parole.

Investigators say the couple put their son’s body into a toy box after he passed away. They say the couple left the box and the child’s remains behind when they got evicted from their rental home.

The discovery of the boy’s skeletal remains in March 2014 led to their arrest and conviction.

KYMA 2019