California father who said he 'beat the living daylights' out of infant is sentenced to life

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. (TCN) -- A father will spend the rest of his life behind bars for torturing and fatally beating his infant daughter last year.

The El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office announced July 29 that Kevin Van Streefkerk pleaded guilty to the murder of his daughter, who was just 5 1/2 weeks old. A judge subsequently sentenced Van Streefkerk to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

According to prosecutors, much of the physical abuse against the victim had been captured on video. Van Streefkerk reportedly confessed to harming his daughter, describing numerous beatings, "including the final beating where he, in his own words, 'beat the living daylights out of her.'"

In June 2023, The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office initially said they investigated a report of physical abuse against the victim, identified by KCRA-TV as Ayla Van Streefkerk. She reportedly succumbed to her injuries at the hospital on June 18, 2023.

Deputy District Attorney Kassie Cardullo said at the sentencing hearing, "Van Streefkerk never cried or showed any emotion for his daughter during his multiple interviews."

Cardullo continued, "She was so tiny, so frail, and defenseless. She couldn’t fight back or even tell anyone that she was in pain. It’s incomprehensible."

The judge who presided over the case called the defendant’s crimes "especially heinous, atrocious, and cruel."

According to KOVR-TV, Van Streefkerk previously worked as a state telecommunications tech for the California Office of Emergency Services, as well as a tennis coach for Mesa Verde High School in Citrus Heights.

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