26-year-old mother, who threatened “to cut” her 7-year-old son hiding under the sink because he cluttered the home she spent cleaning previously before she stabbed him repeatedly, was arrested
Illinois – In a shocking incident in Illinois, a 26-year-old mother, identified as L. Torres, was arrested and ordered held without bond after stabbing her 7-year-old son in their apartment. According to reports, Torres became enraged at the disorder he caused following her late-night cleaning session and threatened “to cut” the boy before stabbing him repeatedly.
The incident unfolded around 8 a.m. Saturday morning when Torres awoke to find her apartment in disarray. According to prosecutors, she had spent the previous evening cleaning and became furious upon seeing the mess. Torres allegedly began hitting her 7-year-old son repeatedly before he ran away and tried to take cover in the cabinet space beneath the kitchen sink. Unable to drag the child out, Torres is said to have grabbed a kitchen knife and begun stabbing blindly into the cabinet space. Prosecutors allege that she continued until she heard the boy scream “Ouch!”—the chilling confirmation that she had pierced him.
After realizing the boy was bleeding, Torres ran with him to her mother’s downstairs apartment. Her mother reportedly “demanded” she take the injured child to the hospital immediately. Torres complied and transported her son to the hospital. Once there, hospital staff observed the boy’s serious abdominal wound and alerted the police. Due to the severity of his injuries, the child was transferred to a children’s hospital where doctors performed emergency surgery for a life-threatening condition. Authorities said the boy’s injuries were significant, but he was listed in fair condition following surgery.
During police questioning, Torres claimed she had not meant to stab her son and that the injuries were the result of her “waving the knife around” while trying to locate him in the cabinet. She later identified the knife she used, and police recovered it at the scene. Further complicating her defense were statements from two family witnesses. Torres’ own 11-year-old cousin reportedly told police that he heard her threatening the child, saying she would “cut or stab him” if he didn’t come out from under the sink. The cousin also claimed that, after Torres was arrested, she instructed her mother not to tell authorities the truth and to “tell a different story.”
Torres’ mother, who had urged her to take the child to the hospital, also confirmed the threats and attempts to manipulate the story after the fact. During Monday’s bond hearing, a judge described the incident as “disturbing and egregious,” noting that Torres posed a clear and serious threat to her child. The court denied her bond and scheduled her next court appearance for June 13. Torres is currently charged with aggravated battery of a child under 13, a felony offense in Illinois.
Authorities continue to investigate the events that led up to the stabbing and whether other forms of abuse were present in the home. Prosecutors emphasized that the boy had sought to hide rather than defend himself, indicating a long-standing fear of his mother’s reactions. This case stands as another deeply troubling reminder of the devastating effects unchecked anger and violence within a household can have on vulnerable children. As the legal proceedings move forward, child protection agencies are expected to conduct further assessments to ensure the safety and well-being of the victim.
