Tara Alexis Sykes, 36. (Photo via: Escambia County Sheriff’s Office)
OAN Staff Brooke Mallory 12:38 PM – Tuesday, October 22, 2024
According to authorities, a 36-year-old woman in Florida is now under arrest after she purportedly tried manipulating a 10-year-old child to commit murder by instructing the kid to drop an infant on the ground and slit the throats of adults living in the same home before setting them on fire.
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The authorities did not specify whether the targeted adults are the 10-year-old’s adoptive parents or what their relationship was to the child. Police only said that the adults are “living with the child temporarily.”
The Gulf Coast Kid’s House, a non-profit children’s advocacy center serving child victims of abuse, contacted Escambia County detectives on October 17th regarding a 2-month-old infant who had been seriously injured after being dropped on the kitchen floor by a 10-year-old.
The 10-year-old had been active on the popular gaming platform Roblox and was in back-and-forth communication with a 36-year-old woman named Tara Sykes, according to information uncovered during the probe.
Sykes had given the 10-year-old instructions on different ways to kill the baby in the ongoing conversation. She suggested either drowning the infant in the bathtub, burning the infant with boiling hot water, or picking the infant up and dropping it on the ground.
Sykes had also instructed the 10-year-old how to destroy their house by dousing bed linens with aerosol spray and lighting them on fire, as well as how to murder the adults that the 10-year-old was temporarily living with by “slitting their throats with a sharp knife while they slept.” Despite dousing the bedding, the 10-year-old was unable to follow the rest of the directions.
As authorities work to unravel this incident, further charges may be brought against Sykes as the investigation continues. Additionally, police did not announce any charges against the 10-year-old.
However, it is important to note that there has been a number of conflicting news reports in regards to the relationship between the 36-year-old woman and the 10-year-old. Some reports claim that Sykes is actually the child’s biological mother, while others maintained that she was a stranger and has never met the child in real life. Police also did not specify whether the 10-year-old is a boy or girl. Some outlets claim that the 10-year-old is a boy while others claim it is a girl.
“I have been in Law Enforcement for over 40 years and have never seen anything quite like this. I am truly disturbed by the circumstances and the thought that anyone could think like this, let alone instruct these acts to be carried out. There is something really wrong with her,” said Sheriff Chip W. Simmons.
Whether Sykes has pleaded guilty or has hired a lawyer to represent her was not announced in the press release.
Meanwhile, parents on Facebook chimed in and commented their thoughts on the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office’s post.
“Pay attention to what your kids are doing, it’s been proven time and time again that games like this were you can communicate with others online should not go unmonitored,” said one user.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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