Boy, 12, Turns In Father After Mother Injured : Canoga Park: The man may also face charges of selling drugs. The child said he wanted to get help for his parent.

A 12-year-old Canoga Park boy who had recently completed a school-sponsored drug education program called police and tearfully asked them to arrest his father for beating his mother and selling marijuana, authorities said Sunday.

Raphael Sandoval, 32, was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail after his arrest Saturday, which was prompted by a phone call from his son, Los Angeles Police Sgt. Dan Mastro said. The boy, whose name was not released, told police that he wanted to get help for his father, Mastro said.

“He told us he had just finished the DARE program--Drug Abuse Resistance Education--at his junior high school and, because of this, he felt compelled to help his father,” Mastro said. “He said he still loves his dad.”

The boy called police about 11 a.m. Saturday and said his father was beating his mother. When Mastro and Officer Teddy Gonzalez arrived at the house near Sherman Way and De Soto Avenue, they met the boy in the front yard.

“We drive up and this little guy is crying and saying, ‘My dad’s beating my mom. My dad’s a dope dealer. You have to arrest him,’ ” Mastro said.

The boy’s mother suffered cuts and bruises but did not require hospitalization, Mastro said.

Mastro and Gonzalez walked to the back yard and found Sandoval sitting in a trailer. They noticed a large bag of marijuana in the trailer and asked to search the house, where they found about six pounds of the drug and two stolen handguns, Mastro said.

Sandoval was arrested on suspicion of spousal battery. Mastro said he will ask the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office to also charge Sandoval with possession of marijuana for sale and possession of stolen property.

As Sandoval sat handcuffed in the back yard, he told his son, “You have to do the right thing,” Mastro said. “I want you to study and do good in school.”

Responding to a radio report of the arrest, an Elks Lodge in Bellflower on Sunday gave its support to the boy. Members at Lodge 2003 said they plan to establish a trust fund for the boy and his mother.

“Everybody talks about how bad drugs are but nobody wants to do anything about it,” said M. G. Moore, a lodge member. “And here’s this kid. . . . It took a lot of courage for a 12-year-old kid to go to the phone and call police.”