Father arrested in northern Mexico for beating 3 sons to death to cause his wife ‘great pain’

MEXICO CITY, Mexico -- A man has been arrested in northern Mexico for allegedly beating to death his three sons in order to get back at the children’s mother, prosecutors said Monday.

The prosecutors' office in the northern state of Sonora said the boys were aged 3, 7 and 8. The deaths occurred in the north-central state of Hidalgo on Jan. 2. The suspect called his own father to tell him what he had done and the grandfather called police.

The suspect apparently fled to Sonora, but was quickly detained there and returned to Hidalgo to face charges.

Prosecutors said the man had an argument with the boys’ mother and killed the kids “in order to cause her great pain.”

“Apparently in revenge against his wife, he killed his sons,” the office said in a statement.