Investigation focuses on timeline before hospital admission

The Mossos d'Esquadra have proposed to the Barcelona judge overseeing the child abuse case that the mobile phones of the parents of a six-week-old baby be tracked via geolocation. The infant was admitted to Vall d'Hebron Hospital on 16 March 2026 with serious injuries, including genital and anal trauma, prompting an investigation into alleged continuous abuse, grievous bodily harm, sexual assault and attempted homicide. The objective of the proposed phone tracking is to determine the parents' locations in early March, before the child's hospitalisation, and to establish whether either was alone with the baby at critical times. The father remains in pre-trial detention after being arrested on 18 March, while the mother was released by order of the Barcelona High Court following over a month in custody.

Medical testimony rules out medical cause for injuries

This Wednesday, 30 September 2026, five healthcare professionals from Hospital del Mar and Hospital de Sant Pau gave testimony before the judge for violence against children and adolescents in Barcelona. They had treated the infant in the weeks before his admission to Vall d'Hebron. Doctors and nurses from Hospital del Mar stated they observed no signs of abuse when the parents brought the baby in on 28 February, and that the parents' behaviour appeared normal. They dismissed the possibility that a urine collection bag placed at the hospital caused the genital hematoma, with one nurse stating it was "impossible" and that she had never seen such an injury in 26 years of paediatric nursing. At Hospital del Mar, the baby underwent an electrocardiogram due to agitation, tachycardia and persistent crying. Staff there also clarified that the mother did not present herself as a nurse during this visit, contrary to claims made at other medical centres.

I have been practicing for over 20 years and nothing like this has ever happened to me,

said one doctor involved in the case.

The father admitted to his brother-in-law that he had "squeezed" the baby, treated him "roughly", possibly pulled his legs, and tightly wrapped him in a blanket to calm him. The brother-in-law said the topic arose after the child's mother mentioned it. On 22 June, the judge ordered the father to remain in prison, citing flight risk, severity of the alleged crimes, and potential obstruction of justice. This Thursday, 1 October 2026, the father is due to testify again. His eldest son will also give voluntary testimony in an effort to support his release. The father, like the mother, continues to deny intentionally abusing the child. Other witnesses scheduled to testify before the father include a doctor from Sant Joan de Déu Hospital and relatives of the baby's mother. No further court dates are currently planned.

Reported by elperiodico.cat, en.ara.cat, infobae.com, El Periódico (CA).