Marie Chishahayo: Mother Charged With Murder Of Child, Blames Young Son And God

A 36-year-old Kansas City woman faces charges of second-degree murder, as well as four counts of child abuse after her 2-year-old daughter was found dead in their apartment. But Marie Chishahayo claims that she didn’t hurt the child. Instead, she says her 9-year-old son disciplined her other children, and that she allowed him to do so because God, she claimed, told him to do so.

The body of the dead child was discovered when a man who identifies himself as the brother of Marie Chishahayo began to worry about the welfare of the family. He had not seen Marie or any of her four children since late February, when everything within the home appeared to be normal. Then, on Sunday, the family failed to appear at their church van’s pick-up. In addition, Marie stopped answering her phone, despite the many calls placed to her by her family.

Chishahyo’s brother told police that on Wednesday, his wife went to his sister’s apartment and believed she saw someone inside the residence, but no one would answer the door. Then, on Thursday, the brother went to the apartment with his own two children. At that point, Chishayo’s eldest child, the 9-year-old son, answered the door, but none of the other children — ranging in age from five months to three years — were immediately present. Chishahayo told her brother that they were asleep upstairs.

But the brother was disturbed by the scene. The residence was wrecked, full of broken dishes and furniture. He made his way upstairs, where one of the bedroom doors were locked. Chishahayo said that the kids were sleeping in that room and everything was fine, but the brother entered the room to check, and it was then that he made the heartbreaking discovery.

He lifted part of a blanket, and his 3-year-old niece Elena Elia immediately cried out, confirming suspicions.

“Mommy, you’re hurting me, stop it.”

He then lifted the blanket all the way and found the other little girl, Callia Elia, aged two, who was obviously dead.

Chishahayo initially insisted that she had never hit the children, saying instead that her son had hit them in order to punish them. She claimed that it was the boy who had heated up a knife and repeatedly burned one of the little girl’s all over her body.

This, she said, she allowed because God had instructed him to do so.

Upon further questioning, however, she admitted that she had hit both the little girls, using a long plastic rod on at least one of them. She said she beat one of the girls because she would not get out of bed.

The mother says that the majority of the abuse, however, was done at the hands of her son. She says on the day that the 2-year-old died, her son had thrown the child against the wall several times that morning.

There is evidence that there was a fire in the apartment, which may have contributed to the death of the little girl. The other little girl is also being treated for burns. She remains hospitalized.

Neighbor Verbena Fisher, who moved in next to Marie Chishahayo three months ago, says she never knew any sort of abuse was occurring just next door.

“This is sad,” Fisher said. “I never smelled fires, heard them fighting, nothing. Who would do something like that, who would let their 9-year-old torture the kids like that?”

Chishahayo’s other children are still in state custody.

It remains unclear as to whether or not the son actually did abuse his younger siblings, or if Chishahayo has merely tried to shift the blame. At this time, though, it is evident that police are rightfully holding Chishahayo as responsible for the murder.

However, a similar story made headlines when a group of young siblings, at the urging of their grown sister, abused their young female cousin to death. In that case, all the children were held accountable for the murder of the little girl. For more on that story, click here.

[Images via KCTV 5 News]