In Nikopol, a 10-year-old girl died in intensive care from multiple bodily injuries, her stepmother has been notified of suspicion, reported Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko on social media on Saturday, writes UNN.
Nikopol. A city that lives under daily Russian shelling. And a city where a 10-year-old girl died not from an enemy missile – but at the hands of a person who was supposed to be her family
Details
According to the Prosecutor General, on February 19 at 5:30 PM, a 10-year-old girl was admitted unconscious to the intensive care unit of Nikopol City Hospital. Intracranial hematoma. "Closed craniocerebral injury. Brain coma. A few hours later, the child was gone," he stated.
"On the way to the medical facility, the 23-year-old stepmother initially claimed that the child fell on the street. Then she changed her version: she got angry because the girl took her makeup. She hit her. And she fell, hitting the floor. But the child's external condition indicated that the violence had lasted much longer. Numerous bruises and hematomas, torn wounds on her neck from nails, traces of blows of varying degrees of age," Kravchenko reported.
As the Prosecutor General pointed out, "the stepmother later admitted to using physical violence, explaining her actions by saying that the girl 'did not obey' and was 'not her own'."
"The father was at work at the time of the tragedy. According to him, he did not notice anything in his daughter's condition that would cause him concern. The family was not registered with social services. Due to distance learning, the child's physical condition also remained unnoticed by teachers. In fact, she was left alone with the cruel treatment," Kravchenko noted.
The suspect has been detained and served with a notice of suspicion under Part 2 of Article 121 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – intentional grievous bodily harm resulting in the death of a child. Prosecutors have applied to the court for her detention.
Also, according to him, criminal proceedings have been initiated on the fact of malicious non-fulfillment of duties of child care (Article 166 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Facts of possible torture are being checked.
"The family also has two other minor children, both biological to both parents – a boy born in 2024 and a girl born in 2022. Their condition is satisfactory, and their safety is under control. They are with their father," the Prosecutor General stated.
The protection of children's rights is one of my personal priorities. We see facts that are difficult to accept as reality. But we will talk about them without silence. Because every adult must clearly understand: violence against children is unacceptable. The punishment will be maximum.