Florida mother orders 10-year-old daughter to kill 2-month-old baby boy and foster parents – Crime Online

A 36-year-old Florida woman has been charged with attempted murder after she allegedly instructed her 10-year-old daughter via a gaming platform to kill the child.

The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office says Tara Alexis Sykes ordered the child to drown the 2-month-old boy in a bathtub, burn him with boiling water and drop him on a tile floor. This was reported on NBC News.

Sykes also reportedly told the child how to kill the adults in the house where she was temporarily living by “cutting their throats with a knife while they slept” and to burn down the house by dousing the sheets with spray and then setting them on fire. The girl doused the sheets but was unable to light them.

The sheriff’s office said the Gulf Coast Children’s Home contacted them on Oct. 17 about an infant who suffered “serious injuries” after the 10-year-old dropped the child on the kitchen floor.

Gulf Coast Kids House is a support center for children where interviews and examinations are carried out in cases of suspected violence.

According to the arrest report, the foster father where the girl and boy lived picked the child up from the floor after the 10-year-old dropped him and took him to the hospital. The boy had a fractured skull, but will probably survive.

The arrest report said the 10-year-old told investigators that her mother told her to drop the baby boy on the floor and that she “was afraid of her mother and felt that if she did not follow the instructions, Sykes would hurt or kill her too.”

Sykes is also reportedly related to the infant.

“I have been in law enforcement for over 40 years and I have never seen anything like this. I am truly disturbed by the circumstances and the thought that anyone would think this way, let alone order such activities. There really is something wrong with her.” Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons said.

Sykes allegedly gave the girl instructions through the Roblox gaming platform.

For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the “Crime Stories with Nancy Grace” podcast..

(Above photo: Tara Alexis Sykes/Escambia County Sheriff’s Office)