WARNING – DISTRESSING CONTENT: Girl, five, attacked after her mum dropped her off at a family member’s home – the heartbroken woman said her daughter looked ‘unrecognisable’
A 10-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy have been charged with rape and attempted murder following a brutal attack on a five-year-old child who was left “unrecognisable”, authorities said.
The victim’s mother said she dropped her daughter off at a family member’s home in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 13. However, the child somehow walked out of the front door and was allegedly attacked by a group of kids outside.
Prosecutors in Cuyahoga County have said two children are facing charges including attempted murder, rape, felonious assault, kidnapping and strangulation. The girl’s mum described the scene she witnessed as “unbelievable” as she said: “I literally saw the worst thing ever! I saw my daughter unrecognisable.
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“I couldn’t wrap my head around it.” She told Cleveland 19: “My daughter was not my daughter. Her hair was scalped from her head. She had bruises and blood all over her body.
“Her eyes were filled with blood. Her lips and mouth were filled with blood. Her nails had debris and dirt stuck in them.”
As reported by KPLC, the victim’s mum said the attack left her daughter physically, emotionally and mentally hurt. She said the child is now in therapy. “I want her to just be somewhat of a normal five-year-old again,” the mum said.
The prosecutor’s office said: “Given the sensitive nature of this case, we decline to release any additional details and decline to comment further.”
Police previously said: “The Cleveland Division of Police Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Unit is actively investigating a case involving multiple children under the age of 10, both as victims and as suspects of the investigation.
“Given the sensitive nature of the matter, the release of further information at this time could jeopardise the integrity of the investigation and violate the constitutional rights and privacy of those involved.” The investigation is ongoing.
This comes after a couple allegedly raped a six-year-old girl and held her hostage in a pit with her dead sister after murdering their mum.
Daniel Callihan, 37, confessed to stabbing his ex-girlfriend Callie Brunett, 35, more than 50 times before kidnapping her eldest daughter and her four-year-old sister.
He drove the girls more than 130 miles to Mississippi where he and his partner Victoria Cox, 34, kept the six-year-old girl as a “sex-slave”, according to a summary of facts signed by Callihan after he pleaded guilty to federal charges in August.
Callihan suffocated the youngest girl to death “by holding [her] closely against his chest” after he and Cox engaged in criminal sexual activity with her, the documents said.
The eldest was rescued by police on June 13 after they found Brunett’s stolen car parked close to Callihan’s property. She was found in a dirt pit, alongside her younger sister’s remains.
Callihan pleaded guilty to both federal and state charges in connection to the crimes, and will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Cox is only facing state charges and was offered a plea deal during her pretrial hearing on Monday. She stands accused of acting as an accessory in the shocking crimes, though was previously indicted on far more serious counts – including capital murder, kidnapping, and sexual battery.