Aubele: More charges likely coming against Fayette parents charged with killing 9-year-old girl
More charges are expected against two Fayette County foster parents charged in the death of 9-year-old Renesmay Eutsey after another child at the home was hospitalized, District Attorney Mike Aubele said in a Facebook post Sunday night.
A 6-year-old boy was among four other children removed from the home of Kourtney Eutsey, 31, and Sarah Shipley, 35, by court order at the request of Child and Youth Services, according to Aubele. An evaluation at Children’s Hospital found numerous signs of severe abuse and neglect of the boy, including a body mass index of 0, the post stated.
The boy is now in stable condition.
During a vigil for Renesmay on Saturday, the district attorney said the additional charges could be filed as soon as today.
Eutsey and Shipley are charged with killing Renesmay, concealing her death and other crimes.
Police found the 9-year-old’s partially submerged in the Youghigheny River around 2 a.m. Thursday, about 14 hours after the two suspects told police she had wandered away from their home in Dunbar.
Shipley told police she had last seen Renesmay Tuesday night, when she had been put to bed, according to the criminal complaint. Upon being woken up by children around noon Wednesday, she discovered Renesmay was missing, police said.
However, children at the home reportedly told investigators Eutsey and Shipley had killed Renesmay, saying they had overheard screaming and crying, followed by the women yelling at Renesmay and kicking her in the stomach. One of the children said they saw Shipley carry Renesmay’s body downstairs in a tote.
Eutsey told police Renesmay had suffered a burn on her back in the bathtub about a week before the incident, which had gotten infected, according to the complaint. The women had not taken her to seek medical attention, court documents stated.
Renesmay had died Tuesday night after vomiting and choking, Eutsey allegedly told police. Eutsey said she was afraid to call police because of Renesmay’s burn “and how skinny she looked,” according to court paperwork.
All four surviving children were placed in foster homes outside Fayette County, Aubele said.