Bond was increased for Elijah Vue’s mother and her boyfriend, both charged in the death of a toddler

TWO RIVERS, Wis. – Elijah Vue’s mother and her boyfriend appeared in Manitowoc County Court Friday after being formally charged Thursday in the 3-year-old girl’s death.

Jesse Vang, Elijah’s mother’s boyfriend, appeared first. A judge set Vang’s bond at $500,000. Katrina Baur, Elijah’s mother, was given a $400,000 cash bond.

Like Vang, Baur was ordered to have no contact with anyone under the age of 18, but there may be an exception that she may see her other child, which was allowed on a previous court hearing when she faced other charges. On Friday, the judge indicated that the court would work out the exact wording of the conditions.

Both Vang and Baur are scheduled to appear in court again on October 21 at 1 p.m

Prosecutors believe Elijah was threatened with extreme punishment before his death and have charged those they say terrorized the boy.

Baur faces two counts of chronic neglect of a child resulting in death and neglect of a child. Vang also faces two counts of physical abuse of a child, repeated acts resulting in death and concealment of a corpse.

A pediatrician working on the case says the history Vang and Baur provided to police is consistent with “torture,” a form of abuse characterized by physical abuse, psychological abuse and neglect.

The doctor said that Elijah had healed wounds on his body that occurred several weeks before his death. Elijah was in Vang’s care for several days leading up to his death and reported his disappearance on February 20.

Investigators say the day before, on February 19, video shows Vang leaving a suitcase on the ground near St. Vincent de Paul.

Police recovered the suitcase and tests showed the saliva inside was positive for Elijah. The medical examiner’s office says Elijah’s cause of death is “homicide by unspecified means.”

Baur told authorities that Elijah was with Vang so he could correct his bad behavior and teach him “how to be a man.”

The Manitowoc County District Attorney’s Office says their first priority is getting justice for Elijah.

“This has been a complex investigation, with hundreds of pages of police reports, video evidence and other materials painstakingly examined. The charges we filed today reflect that diligent and thorough work,” District Attorney Jacalyn Labre said during a news conference Thursday.

Early in Vang and Baur’s conversations with investigators, they talked about hiring lawyers.

According to the complaint, about a minute after Vang called 911 to report Elijah missing, he received a message from Baur, instructing him to tell police they were taking a nap and Elijah left.

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