Two young children, aged nine and ten, are facing serious charges after a five-year-old girl was reportedly raped and scalped in Ohio, US. The victim, who is autistic and has remained anonymous, went missing on September 13 from a relative’s home in Cleveland. She was later discovered unconscious, bloodied, and injured in a nearby field.
The nine-year-old boy and ten-year-old girl are accused of attempted murder, rape, felonious assault, kidnapping, and strangulation in connection with the incident. While the girl denied the charges during her arraignment in Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court, the boy failed to appear, leading the judge to warn of a potential arrest warrant if he misses future hearings.
Prosecutors revealed that the victim had been subjected to urination and sexual assault before being found, resulting in her hospitalization for several days. The victim’s mother urged the court to consider the severity of the crimes committed against her daughter by the accused children.
During the court proceedings, the accused girl, accompanied by a woman, appeared wearing a mask and a pink coat with a fur-lined hood. The girl’s defense attorney denied the charges on her behalf, while a request was made for her release to her family, which was opposed by the prosecutor who suggested home detention with an ankle monitor.
The judge ruled in favor of home detention for the girl, emphasizing the seriousness of the charges and the absence of her parents in court. The defense attorney for the girl requested a competency evaluation, indicating that the case’s progression would depend on the girl’s understanding of the legal proceedings.
The boy’s attorney sought a continuance, citing car trouble experienced by the boy’s mother. The judge granted the request, rescheduling the arraignment for a later date and warning of a potential arrest warrant if the boy fails to appear.
The victim’s mother described the horrific condition in which her daughter was found, with injuries including scalp lacerations, bruises, and blood all over her body. Disturbing images revealed the extent of the girl’s injuries, including significant hair loss. The mother recounted her daughter’s harrowing experience upon waking up in the hospital, where the child expressed fear and confusion about what had happened to her.
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