Nanny Accused Of Stabbing Two Children To Death In Their Manhattan Home Appears In Court

Nanny Yoselyn Ortega is accused of stabbing to death two children under her care in their Upper West Side apartment in Manhattan. The nanny allegedly stabbed the two young children, ages 6 and 2, to death after feeling overwhelmed by additional housework duties added to her job description by the children’s parents. The dead bodies of the children were found by the distraught mother, Marina Krim, after she returned home from picking up her third child from swimming lessons. After three years, the nanny is finally appearing in court to face trial for the murders of Lucia and Leo Krim.

The Daily Mail reports that nanny Yoselyn Ortega reported to court looking “gaunt and frail” to stand trial for the murder of 6-year-old Lucia Krim and 2-year-old Leo Krim. The nanny worked for the Krim family and had been experiencing financial troubles. Therefore, the children’s mother Marina says that they began giving the nanny additional household duties such as cleaning to earn extra income. However, the nanny says she became overwhelmed with the new duties.

Therefore, in October of 2012, the nanny allegedly stabbed the two children under her care and placed their bodies in a bathtub. She then attempted to take her own life by slitting her throat. However, she did not die from her throat wounds and instead is now standing trial for the murder of the two young Krim children.

The murder took place in the family’s Upper West Side apartment in Manhattan as their mother Marina left to pick up their other sibling from swimming lessons. When Marina returned to the home, she found her children’s lifeless bodies in the bathtub alongside the nanny. The nanny had knife wounds on her neck. When police initially questioned the nanny about the murder, she noted that she “hurt” the children because she was having money troubles and was angry at the kids’ parents for giving her more duties at the home.

“I had to do everything and take care of the kids. God forgive me, so many things they made me do. Pray for me.”

Though she allegedly admitted to “hurting” the children, police say when they showed photos of the crime scene to the nanny she asked “Oh, my God, who did that to them?” Ortega has since been through mental evaluations and was determined mentally sound enough to stand trial but has denied responsibility for the two murders.

Meanwhile, the Krim family is trying to pick up the pieces and rebuild their family. Marina has setup a nonprofit organization in honor of her two deceased children called the Lulu and Leo Fund that focuses on raising funds for childhood educational programs. The family notes that art and creativity was a means of coping for the family and their surviving daughter Nessie.

“We believe every child on the planet deserves the deep engagement with art, nature, and creativity that our children had, not simply for the sheer joy and excitement it brings children but for the powerful tool it can be. We have felt the critical importance of creativity as a healing force and want to ensure that these creative outlets are available to all children and communities facing adversity.”

Since the horrifying murder of her children, Marina has had a son which she named Felix and is pregnant again with another son as of the time of this posting.

[Image Credit: Lulu and Leo Fund]