BEAUREGARD PARISH, La. (KPLC) - A DeRidder man arrested for child abuse is now accused of raping his girlfriend’s one-year-old.
Chance Cole, previously arrested on a count of second-degree cruelty to a juvenile, now faces a count of first-degree rape of a victim under 13.
The one-year-old suffered from a fractured skull, trauma to her abdomen and chest, and apparent sexual abuse, Beauregard Parish Sheriff Mark Herford said.
BPSO first got the report of the abuse on Jan. 17, when Cole and the baby’s mother, Kristen Lane, flagged down a deputy, Herford said.
The infant was quickly taken to a Baton Rouge facility. Cole and Lane were both booked into the Beauregard Parish Jail on Jan. 18 on counts of second-degree cruelty to a juvenile.
“I’m extremely upset about how this baby was treated,” Herford told 7News. ”You know, I’ve seen other young children abused, even killed. But this is one of the worst sexual assaults that I’ve ever been involved with."
At last check, the baby girl is doing much better, according to Herford.
Herford extends his appreciation to the Calcasieu Parish Crime Lab and the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab, who helped significantly and quickly.