11-year-old boy was waterboarded as form of discipline at home, New Mexico cops say

An 11-year-old boy was subjected to water torture as a discipline technique by his mom’s boyfriend, according to Las Cruces Police Department officials in New Mexico.

The procedure, known as waterboarding, is one of several abusive techniques that Dominic Frederick Salas, 37, used to keep the boy and his sister in line, according to investigators.

Salas, 37, was charged with two felony counts of second- and third-degree intentional child abuse, police said in a July 27 news release.

Las Cruces Police began investigating the case at the behest of the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department. The incidents occurred in 2020, officials said.

“An 11-year-old boy, the son of Salas’ girlfriend, told police he was excessively disciplined by Salas who also threatened to kill him,” police officials said.

“Investigators learned that, in one incident, Salas is accused of grabbing the 11-year-old boy’s neck and lifting him off the floor. In another instance, Salas is accused of holding the boy on the floor and pouring water over his mouth and nose which restricted the boy’s breathing.”

Waterboarding is a “barbaric practice” that involves holding a victim down and pouring water over the face to prevent breathing, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. A cloth is often placed over the victim’s face to avoid rapid drowning, experts say.

“It is a paradigmatic torture technique that has long been considered a war crime,” the ACLU reports.

Salas put a towel over the boy’s face and held him to the floor during the water procedure, according to KFOX14. The boy struggled to breathe “for a minute after the incident until he was able to cough up water,” the station reported, citing court documents.

Salas was arrested July 22 and released the next day “on his own recognizance,” police said.

Detectives “are continuing their investigation and additional charges are possible,” officials said.

The identity of the boy and his mother were not released by police.