Idaho State Police find severely beaten woman and infant during traffic stop; driver arrested for possession of meth

During a traffic stop on Interstate 90 in Idaho, a man was arrested for trafficking methamphetamine, and police also found a severely beaten woman and 2-year-old child, according to a news release from Idaho State Police.

The suspect, Jorge Gonzalez-Vergel, 59, was driving a Dodge van with North Dakota license plates Tuesday on I-90 in Shoshone County near milepost 46. Gonzalez-Vergel, whose residence isn’t known by officials, was with a 32-year-old female and two children, ages 2 and 1.

Idaho State Police pulled over the van and found the woman with trauma on her face and the 2-year-old child with “visible marks and scars which are indications of severe child abuse,” the news release stated.

The child is being treated for life-threatening injuries, including brain injuries, at Sacred Heart Medical Center’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Spokane, according to the news release, but ISP does not consider Gonzalez-Vergel the suspect in the child abuse, according to the news release.

The investigation into the physical abuse is being investigated by the Redmond Police Department.

Police also found methamphetamine, marijuana and paraphernalia in the van, and Gonzalez-Vergel was arrested and booked into the Shoshone County Jail. He faces charges for trafficking methamphetamine and unlawfully possessing a firearm.