The woman who ran the company that was supposed to provide 24-hour home care to a boy who starved to death last Christmas will not be allowed to post bail and will not walk free, a Broward judge ruled Thursday.
Mirlande Moltimer, 47, owner of Samaritin Home Health Care, told Children’s Medical Services, the state agency that administers Medicaid, that she last saw Deonte Atwell on Oct. 23, 2023, according to a motion filed by the Broward district attorney’s office. By then, Deonte’s health had been declining, falling from a normal weight of 46 pounds when he was 5 years old to an emaciated 7 pounds when paramedics were called to his Fort Lauderdale home two days after his 7th birthday.
“The victim was subjected to prolonged food deprivation that was systematically carried out, resulting in his death by starvation,” wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Kelly, who heads the prosecution’s Child Mortality and Abuse Unit. “Had the victim received home care in the days, weeks, and months prior to his death, he would not have starved to death or been subjected to severe medical neglect.”
Moltimer is one of five people charged in what a grand jury ruled Deonte’s murder. Molitmer is charged with aggravated manslaughter and third-degree murder. She is also accused of billing Medicaid between $10,000 and $50,000 for services the child never received.
Deonte had thoracic spina bifida and hydrocephalus, a medical condition that required 24-hour home care and left him immobile from his waist to his knees.
Broward Circuit Judge George Odom on Thursday granted a state request to keep Moltimer in custody, despite opposition from defense attorney Bruce Lehr.
Also charged is Moltimer’s employee, Cassandre Lassegue, 33. He is accused of premeditated murder, among other charges. Three of Deonte’s relatives are also charged.
Deonte’s mother, Michelle Doe, 37, and his brother, Tyreck Irvin, 21, also face charges of first-degree murder. The child’s grandfather, James Graham, the only one of the five free on bail, faces charges of aggravated manslaughter, child abuse and failure to report child abuse.
They are all due back in court on October 31.
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457. Follow him on Threads.net/@rafael.olmeda.
