NYC mom allegedly beat 6-yr-old daughter to death as neighbor heard child 'screaming for her dear life'
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THE BRONX, NEW YORK: A Bronx mother has been charged with murder in the brutal beating death of her 6-year-old daughter, who neighbors say begged for her life before being killed.
According to officials, Lynija Eason-Kumar, 23, was arrested on April 25 after her daughter Jalayah was murdered inside a dirty family apartment in NYCHA's Forest Houses. The crime allegedly took place on May 26, 2023.
Jalayah Eason 'screamed for her life' before her mom Lynija killed her
Sources at the scene said the mother initially told police she found the girl unresponsive and cold in a closet in the family’s apartment. According to police, the mother said she tried CPR on Jalayah, but she didn’t wake up. The girl had bruises on her wrists and torso. The EMS arrived 15 minutes later and took the girl to Lincoln Medical Center, but couldn’t save her.
On Thursday, April 25, Jalayah died from injuries sustained from blunt force trauma and asphyxiation. The New York Post reported that before the morning beating, a neighbor of Jalayah’s upstairs said he heard the girl screaming for her life. “At 3.42 in the morning, that girl was screaming. She was screaming for dear life . . . She was screaming like hell. She kept saying ‘stop, stop, stop.’ … You could hear the thumps, bro," Rivera said.
Police sources said that the family's address had received multiple reports of domestic violence.
Lynija Eason-Kumar charged with alleged abuse of her two children
Charges against Eason-Kumar stemmed from her alleged abuse of her other two children, a 3-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy, during her previous arrest.
A criminal complaint about that case states that when police visited the home on May 26, the two children had rashes, cuts, and scars. Hernandez stated that the 8-year-old had "countless small lacerations in various stages of healing on his back, scalp, arms and legs."
The boy allegedly also had a deep gash on his scalp that was partially healed, as well as a cut on his forehead.
Hernandez noted that the girl had a " widespread discolored rash to her inner thighs and buttocks," in addition to a "long, discolored scar" on her waist. The disgusting, bug-infested home's details were also included in the complaint.
The Bronx Criminal Court is still handling that case. Lynija was scheduled to be arraigned on April 25 with the new charges, which also include counts of manslaughter.
