A missing 9-year-old girl was found dead early Thursday in a Pennsylvania river — and her foster mom’s girlfriend has been charged with killing her, according to cops.
Renesmay Eutsey was found partially submerged in the Youghiogheny River near Smithton, about 40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh and 20 miles south of her home in Dunbar.
Kourtney Malinda Eutsey, who is the girlfriend of Renesmay’s 31-year-old court-ordered guardian, was arrested after other children in the home told investigators they saw “mommy,” kill the little girl, according to court documents obtained by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Eutsey and her girlfriend reported the youngster missing on Wednesday afternoon — some 11 hours after the girl was last seen around 2 a.m. that same day, WTAE reported.
When police interviewed the three other kids living in the home — two girls and a boy whose names and ages were not released — they revealed they’d seen Eutsey kill Renesmay and put her in a plastic container the night before.
“I’m never going to see my baby sister again because she’s in heaven,” one of the children told police, according to the complaint.
Another child told authorities that she heard Renesmay on Tuesday night “screaming and crying” outside of her bedroom. When she went out to see what was going on, she saw Eutsey and her girlfriend yelling at Renesmay and kicking her “in the stomach.”
When the two women saw the girl watching them, Eutsey’s girlfriend punched her in the mouth, according to the complaint.
The girl told police she then saw Renesmay’s body stuffed into a black garbage bag that was then put inside a plastic tote.
Eutsey told investigators Renesmay burned her back in the bathtub last week, and the wound may have become infected. The girl vomited and choked Tuesday night and despite her efforts to save her, died, she claimed.
She said she was too scared to call 911 because she “did not want to get in trouble due to the victim’s burn and how skinny she looked,” police wrote.
Start your day with all you need to know
Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.
Thanks for signing up!
Eutsey later led investigators to Renesmay’s body on the riverbank.
The charges against Eutsey allege the child died “due to physical abuse and lack of seeking medical treatment.”
Eutsey has since been charged with homicide, the Fayette County District Attorney’s Office said.
Her girlfriend, who has been identified by authorities, has not been charged with any crimes.
