Tragic.
A mother in Florida has been arrested following the deaths of her two children, who were allegedly found tied up in the family’s apartment.
Odette Lysse Joassaint was charged with two counts of first-degree murder after her 5-year-old daughter Laura and 3-year-old son Jeffrey were found dead at the Miami home.
According to CBS Miami, police found the children unresponsive in bed and bound by their ankles, wrists and neck. Officers untied them and attempted resuscitation, but ultimately pronounced both children dead at the scene.
The medical examiner’s office is yet to confirm the cause of death but authorities believe it was likely strangulation.
“We received several calls to 911. They were calling but she wasn’t saying much,” Miami Dade Police Officer Michael Vega told the media outlet. “The one thing she did say to officers: ‘They’re inside. Go get them. I don’t want them.'”
When they arrived at the home, officers found Joassaint appearing to be “irate”, hallucinating, or “going through a crisis”, he added to Local 10.
Police said they previously called to the apartment on numerous occasions for suspected trespassing, several disturbances and domestic violence. This was the first time they have responded to an incident at the home involving children.
The children’s father, Frantzy Belval, did not live at the apartment as he and Joassaint had split, but the children often came to stay at his home. He is devastated by the alleged actions of his estranged wife, telling Local 10 he could have never imagined losing his children in such a way.
“You’re a mother, what do you feel? There’s a devil inside of your head,” said family friend, Darlene Petion.
Another friend, Hermione Danjour, claimed Joassaint’s mental health deteriorated when her older daughter was taken away from her by the Department of Children and Families (or Child Protective Services).
“She got another daughter too that is 14 that has not been living with her since December, which means that affected her mental issue,” she told the outlet.
Feature image credit by CBS4.
