Jose Jesus Castillo, 31, of Refugio was arrested Thursday, Dec. 11, and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury, a first degree felony. Castillo is currently on suicide watch at the county jail after an alleged attempt to hang himself.

Castillo has been accused of holding a hot fork to an 18-month old baby’s cheek, in what Lt. Rodney Cox called “branding.” Cox is investigating the incident.

“This young child has an ugly burn and will be scarred for the rest of his life,” Cox said Wednesday morning.

The investigator said the child was asleep in his crib at his grandmother’s home when the grandmother’s boyfriend returned from work during the night.

“The child’s mother is incarcerated so the baby has been staying with his grandmother,” Cox said.

The suspect allegedly took the child from his playpen and took him to the kitchen where the suspect was preparing food. The grandmother awoke to the sounds of the child crying at 3 a.m.

“His first story was the child fell,” Cox said. “Then he changed his story and said the child injured himself with the fork.”

The suspect allegedly would not allow the grandmother to leave the house or seek medical attention for the baby, Cox said. The next morning, the suspect was distracted and the woman was able to get away with the injured child who was treated at the emergency room at Refugio Memorial Hospital and released.

Cox said the suicide attempt is also under investigation and the details remain sketchy.

“He hit the call button and told jail personnel he needed help,” Cox said. “It is impossible to reach the call button from where he was hanging. When corrections officers got to his cell, he was hanging by what we believe is the elastic off his underwear. The fact he was able to call makes me believe that he called for help prior to hanging himself.”

In suicide watch, Castillo is being held with only paper garments, with regular checks to his cell..

The suspect is being held on $150,000 bond.