More details have come to light about the case of Elijah Vue.
The criminal complaint against 39-year-old Jesse Vang stated that he had helped his teenage son get on the bus the morning of February 20th, and when he came back inside, 3-year-old Elijah was still asleep.
Vang told investigators that he brought Elijah into his bedroom and closed the door before going back to sleep himself.
When Vang woke up at around 11:00 a.m., he claimed Elijah was gone.
Vang and Elijah’s mother, Katrina Baur, were said to be in a relationship, with Baur also stating in the complaint against her that she left Elijah in Vang’s care for the past week so he could “help Baur correct (Eliijah’s) bad behaviors.”
Vang told police that he used time-outs as a form of punishment and admitted that he was in time out for “a majority of his time” at the home as Vang intended it to be a “form of boot camp.”
Vang also admitted to forcing Elijah to stand by the bed next to him for two to three hours at a time, threatening him with cold water if he were to try to sit down.
Vang also told police that Elijah feared him but corrected himself to say that he “respects” him before saying that he was trying to make the child understand that “going home is like a privilege for him.”
Baur, who lives in Wisconsin Dells, told police that she was not in the Manitowoc area between February 16th and 17th, but a search of her and Vang’s phones determined that was a lie.
As of Monday, Vang is still only charged with Neglecting a Child Under 6, while Baur is charged with Neglecting a Child Under 6 as Party to the Crime and Two Counts of Obstructing an Officer.
