A 2-month-old child was seriously injured after a 10-year-old dropped the baby on a tile floor, authorities in Florida said as they announced the arrest of a 36-year-old woman who allegedly instructed the child through the online video game Roblox about how to kill the child.
Tara Alexis Sykes was taken into custody Friday and charged with attempted murder while engaged in aggravated child molestation, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post Monday.
An arrest report alleged that Sykes communicated with her 10-year-old daughter on the online gaming platform Roblox and instructed the girl “on various methods to kill the child.” Sykes is related to the two-month-old baby, according to court documents.
“Sykes instructed the 10-year-old to drown the child in the bathtub, scald the child with boiling water and drop the child to the ground to kill him,” the sheriff’s office said.
On Thursday, the sheriff’s office was contacted by Gulf Coast Kids House about a two-month-old baby who suffered serious injuries after being dropped onto the kitchen floor by the 10-year-old. Gulf Coast Kids House is a child advocacy center that conducts forensic interviews and medical examinations of children suspected of abuse.
The arrest report alleged that the 10-year-old picked up the child “after he became fussy and walked into the kitchen with him to find an adult” when the baby fell. The foster father picked up the baby and took him to the hospital, where doctors said he had a fractured skull.
Morgan Lewis, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, said the 2-month-old baby is expected to survive.
The 10-year-old reportedly said during a forensic interview that she “dropped the baby on the floor toward her mother,” according to the arrest report. The girl said she was “terrified for her mother and felt that Sykes would also harm or kill her if she did not follow instructions,” the report said.
An investigation into the incident also found that Sykes allegedly instructed the 10-year-old on “how to kill the adults the 10-year-old was temporarily living with by slitting their throats with a knife while they slept and entering their home “I sprayed the sheets with aerosol cans and set them on fire,” the sheriff’s office said.
The 10-year-old allegedly doused the sheets, but was unable to carry out the instructions, according to authorities.
Sheriff Chip W. Simmons said he was “truly disturbed” by the allegations “and the thought that anyone could think that way, let alone order these acts to be carried out.”
“I have been in law enforcement for over 40 years and have never seen anything like this,” he said in a statement. “There’s something really wrong with her.”
Sykes is being held without bond. The sheriff’s office spokesperson said they do not expect the 10-year-old to be charged. The case is still under investigation.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
