A Kenyan mother has been accused of the unthinkable. Police allege Olivia Naserian, 24, stabbed her 2-year-old daughter, Glory Njeri, to death and then ate her internal organs. Witnesses claim they heard screaming and rushed to help. Nothing could have prepared them for the gruesome scene they would soon discover.
On April 23, Naserian was reportedly naked in her home and singing nursery rhymes to her baby while she violently attacked her. Neighbors tried to open the door and help the child, but it was too late. Once inside, they saw the infant had died, and Naserian collapsed on the floor.
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Everything seemed fine with the young mom.
The Nairobi Wire reported that Gladys Wanjiku, Naserian's aunt, said her niece had just returned to Kitengela from Kirinyaga, where she had been living with her boyfriend for the past eight months. She reportedly appeared to be doing OK at first, but things took a turn on Sunday.
The young woman began speaking in tongues and destroying things like utensils and a TV in her parent's home, where she was staying. Neighbors claimed Naserian began to chase the dog around the house before she attacked her child.
Neighbors apparently witnessed the brutal attack.
Neighbors desperately tried to get into the home as the child's screams pierced the air. One neighbor told the The Standard they could hear Naserian chanting to her baby, "You will never cry again my baby … you will forever sleep. I love you, my daughter."
The neighbor said the child cried out her mother's name in pain. "The woman ate her baby's liver as we watched. She also removed other internal organs [such] as intestines and heart from the body before becoming unconscious," the neighbor said.
A neighbor recorded the attack.
Unable to get into the apartment, neighbors contacted police for help. As they waited, one neighbor filmed the horrific scene.
Emergency responders took the unconscious Naserian to an area hospital. Police said she would receive a mental health evaluation as part of the investigation.
The case caused public outrage.
Hundreds took to social media to share their thoughts about the tragic death of such a young child. Many called for better mental health care for mothers who struggle. Others think she should be subjected to the same torture she put her child through. Some asked the public to think about the alleged killer's family and the stress her relatives are going through.
"At this moment in time it's quite tormenting to be Olivia Naserian's parents. Just imagine your own daughter performs that cruel ritual-like act to your grandchild, in your own house, in your absence, spreading blood and her flesh all over the lounge!" Tsarm Wachira wrote on Facebook. "And then usikie that she even ate pieces of the girl! Yaani, your own daughter! This is so torturous to their minds I don't know how they will come to terms with this. Spare a thought for these parents."
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Parents kill children far more often than many people may realize.
A 31-year study in the journal Forensic Science International showed that between 1976 and 2001, 500 parents committed filicide in the United States each year, CNN reported. Among those, 72% of cases involved children 6 and younger. Mothers and fathers committed filicide at nearly the same rate, and among the dead, 90% were the killer's biological child, CNN reported.
The reasons behind filicide are reportedly often one of five key factors, CNN shared. For altruism, the parent believes it is in the child's best interest. In acute psychosis, the parent kills the child because of something inconsistent with reality. For unwanted child, the parent thinks the child is a hindrance. In an accidental death, the child dies under unplanned circumstances. When it comes to revenge, the parent kills the child to get back at a spouse.
