A woman in the US state of Pennsylvania has been accused of fatally poisoning her boyfriend's toddler by feeding her batteries, screws and nail polish remover. According to a report by the New York Post, Aleisia Owens was arrested on Thursday for the suspected homicide of Iris Rita Alfera, last year in June.
Ms Aleisia was arrested after Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry announced that an autopsy determined the child's death was caused due to fatal levels of acetone in her blood.
The report revealed that the 20-year-old woman researched the harmful effects the items could have on a child before the killing.
The Attorney General Henry said, “The details of this case are heartbreaking. It is hard to fathom someone taking deliberate steps to harm a completely helpless child, and then mislead investigators about what happened. The investigation shows that, for months, the defendant conducted meticulous research on how certain substances harm children. She then allegedly acted on her findings.”
On June 25, 2023, the 20-year-old was with Iris' father Bailey Jacoby, when he left the house to go to the store.
After some time, Mr Jacoby received a call from Ms Owens that something was wrong with his daughter.
As per a criminal complaint obtained by WPXI, Bailey Jacob rushed to the New Castle home only to find his baby unresponsive. He immediately called 911.
Soon after this, the 18-month-old toddler was rushed to UPMC Jameson Hospital in New Castle for treatment. However, roughly one hour away, she was airlifted to UPMC Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh.
But sadly, four days later Iris died due to organ failure. Iris lived with her mother Emily Alfera and her grandparents while her father, Mr Jacoby, had only visitation rights.
The complaint revealed that Ms Aleisia told police that the girl had hit her head after she “cramped up” and fell off her bed.
But the autopsy report exhibited that the 18-month-old baby ingested numerous “water beads,” along with button-shaped batteries and a metal screw, months before she died.
After the officials searched Ms Aleisia's phone they found that between February 2023 and June 2023, she had been looking up “information on household products that could cause a child serious harm or death, including water beads, batteries, and nail polish,”
In addition, the police found that she also searched for “beauty products that are poisonous to kids” and “medications leading to cause accidental poisoning deaths in children.”
