Trial begins for Fresno man charged with murder in 2-year-old’s brutal death
Xander Villalobos was just three days away from his 3rd birthday. But this fun-loving little boy never got the chance to celebrate. He was killed on Oct. 5, 2021, and his mother’s ex-boyfriend was charged with murder.
On Monday, Aaron Moton’s jury trial began with prosecutor Amy Cobb taking aim at the 25-year-old defendant as the one who caused the little boy’s horrific and fatal injuries.
Cobb said that based on the autopsy results and the timing of Xander’s death, Moton was the only one with the child at the time he was injured.
The child’s mother Nikkey Rojas had stepped out of the apartment momentarily to retrieve her son’s shoes from his aunt, who also lives in the same complex. The aunt helps out with childcare.
Cobb said the mother was gone for 10 minutes and when she returned she saw Moton holding Xander who was completely unresponsive.
“Moton didn’t say anything,” Cobb said. “So she called her sister who told her she needed to call 911 right away.”
On the recorded 911 call, Cobb said you can hear the child in the background, struggling to breathe and choking.
Xander was taken to the hospital where he later died. During the autopsy, doctors discovered the boy was struck in the abdomen area with so much force that it caused his liver to be torn apart.
“This assault could not have been anything but deliberate,” Cobb said.
Forensic pathologist Michael Chambliss with the Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office testified that Xander’s body had multiple bruises from this head to his ankles.
Chambliss said some of the bruises were consistent with the types of bumps a typical two-to-three-year-old might get, but others were not.
Several of the bruises were in a circular shape and some were grouped together. The outside of the bruise appeared to have a darker color while the center was lighter, indicating to Chambliss that an object of some type might have been used on the child.
Moton’s defense attorney Scott Kinney said during his opening statements that Moton didn’t hurt Xander.
Even though he was not his biological father, Moton assumed that role for Xander and helped take care of him while his ex-girlfriend was working.
Kinney argued that the bruises on Xander’s body did not come from the hands of Moton and might have come from someone else.
“It is a mystery, but it is not Mr. Moton,” Kinney said. “Where is the motive. Aaron was getting ready to go to work. He loves this child and took care of him everyday and all of a sudden he is a child killer.”
This story was originally published August 28, 2023 at 5:48 PM.
