Age: Young Adult – Disability Day of Mourning

Caterina Whitten

Name: Caterina Whitten.
Died: January 3, 2025.
Age at death: 29.
Cause of death: Unspecified neglect.
Location: Lowell, Arkansas, USA.
Disability: Fraser syndrome; blind, autism.

Details:
Caterina was found dead in a filthy home.

One of six adopted siblings, Caterina was born in Russia. As a child, she loved swimming and playing on her swing set. Her five siblings, who had also allegedly been neglected, were rescued when her father was arrested after Caterina’s death.

Case Status:
David Whitten (adoptive father), charged with negligent homicide and six counts of endangering the welfare of an incompetent person.

Sources:
Arkansas police arrest 72-year-old man for negligent homicide in disabled daughter’s death
Lowell man accused of negligent homicide, endangering welfare
Lowell man faces negligent homicide charge after death of disabled daughter
‘A really sad story’: Neighbors react to tragic death of Lowell woman
Horrifying way disabled woman died in Ozarks house of horrors she shared with ‘dad’ and 5 handicapped siblings

Jijesh Vijayan

Name: Jijesh Vijayan.
Died: December 27, 2024.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Poisoned.
Location: Kozhikode, Kerala, India.
Disability: Intellectual disability, bedridden.

Details:
Jijesh’s neighbors found him and his father in critical condition. They were rushed to the hospital, but both died from poisoning. Authorities believe that Jijesh’s father poisoned him and then ingested some of the poison himself.

Case Status:
Manichirakkal NM Vijayan (Father) is deceased.

Sources:
Wayanad DCC treasurer, son die after ingesting poison
Bathery DySP to lead special team formed to probe Wayanad DCC treasurer, son’s death

Esther Nakakande

No Photo Name: Esther Nakakande.
Died: November 9, 2024.
Age at death: 20.
Cause of death: Starvation, torture.
Location: Mairye Village, Wakiso District, Central Region, Uganda.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
When one of Esther’s relatives came to visit her, he was horrified to find her dead. Esther’s relatives found that her body was covered in wounds, and she was emaciated. They believe her father and stepmother, who have been arrested, tortured Esther and did not feed her enough in the four months she stayed with them before she died.

Case Status:
Elemiya Kibirige (Father), arrested on suspicion of murder.
Justine Zalwango (Stepmother), arrested on suspicion of murder.

Sources:
Wakiso Couple Netted for Starving Disabled Daughter to Death
Couple Held Over Death of Disabled Girl

Tegan Fredericks

Name: Tegan Fredericks.
Died: October 28, 2024.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Severe pressure sores.
Location: Port Augusta, South Australia, Australia.
Disability: Physical and intellectual disability.

Details:
Medics were called to Tegan’s home, where she lived with her mother, because she had fallen and could not be put back into her chair. They found her in serious condition and rushed her to the hospital, but she died four days later from severe pressure sores. The home where Tegan had been living was “not fit for human habitation”; authorities say they have found “clear indicators of criminal neglect”.

Case Status:
Tegan’s death has been declared “a major crime”. She lived with her mother, who served as a caregiver, but police are still investigating who exactly was responsible for Tegan’s condition. No one has yet been charged.

Sources:
Death of disabled woman being investigated as major crime
Death of 26yo woman who lived with ‘significant’ disabilities in ‘squalid’ conditions declared a major crime
Woman with disability found dead was in home ‘not fit for humans’

Kris Knox

a young Black man wearing a baseball cap faces to the right Name: Kris Knox.
Died: October 20, 2024.
Age at death: 26.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Warren, Michigan, USA.
Disability: Brain cancer, mental health disability.

Details:
Police were summoned to Kris’s home after his brother ran to a neighbors house for help, saying that his mother had threatened him with a gun. When the police checked on Kris and his mother, they found that she had shot him and then killed herself. His brother, who had escaped the house, survived unhurt.

Case Status:
His mother; deceased.

Sources:
2 dead in Warren, police suspect murder-suicide – CBS Detroit
Mother, son dead after murder-suicide in Warren
Police: Warren mom fatally shoots special needs son before taking her own life
Grandma of Warren man shot by mom in apparent murder-suicide said family struggled with health issues

Neetu, Nikki, Neeru, and Nidhi Sharma

No Photo Name: Neetu Sharma.
Age at death: 26.
Disability: Chronic illness.

Name: Nikki Sharma.
Age at death: 24.
Disability: Chronic illness.

Name: Neeru Sharma.
Age at death: 23.
Disability: Blind; chronic illness.

Name: Nidhi Sharma.
Age at death: 20.
Disability: Mobility impaired; chronic illness.

Died: September 27, 2024.
Cause of death: Poisoned.
Location: Rangpuri, New Delhi, Delhi, India.

Details:
Sisters Neetu, Nikki, Neeru, and Nidhi were mourning their mother, who had died a year before. Neighbors said that because of their health, they never left their room. They shared one mobile phone between them. Their father, who had withdrawn from society after his wife’s death, was obsessed with their illnesses and their treatment at one hospital or another. A friend of the family says that their father did not want them to go out or work.

Following a tip from the building caretaker, authorities broke into their apartment and found the four women’s bodies, their father’s body, and the poisoned sweets that their father had used to kill his daughters before taking his own life.

The young women were all graduates. One had studied home science, another commerce, and two of them studied arts.

Case Status:
Heeralal Sharma (Father), deceased.

Sources:
Delhi Rangpuri shocker: Cops suspect man sunk into ‘depression’ after wife’s death
‘Daughters rarely left their house’: Shocking details emerge in Delhi’s Rangpuri deaths
Man, 4 daughters found dead at Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, police suspect suicide
Delhi horror: Father commits suicide after killing 4 daughters in Vasant Kunj
Delhi family ‘suicide pact’: All 4 girls were graduates, father a Lord Hanuman devotee
Father, four daughters die by suicide in Delhi, probe on
Man, four daughters found dead in their rented accommodation in Delhi’s Vasant Kunj
Vasant Kunj deaths: Investigation points to financial distress, only Rs 208 left in bank account
Man, 4 Daughters Found Dead At Delhi Home, Cops Suspect Murder-Suicide

Priyanka Narsaiah

Name: Priyanka Narsaiah.
Died: May 14, 2024.
Age at death: 24.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Karimnagar, Telangana, India.
Disability: Mental disorder.

Details:
Priyanka had a mental illness, which had been treated and was in remission. She had been married and had a 13-month-old son when the mental illness came back, and a visit to a place of worship did no good. Her parents allegedly strangled her when they found out she was sick again and claimed it was a natural death, but Priyanka’s neighbors were suspicious and contacted the police, who arrested her parents.

Case Status:
Chepyala Narsaiah (Father), charged with murder.
Yellavva Narsaiah (Mother), charged with murder.

Sources:
Parents Murder Daughter After Recurrence Of Mental Disorder In Telangana’s Karimnagar, Arrested
Telangana Couple Arrested For 24-year-Old Daughter’s Murder
Sircilla Parents kill mentally affected daughter, held

Khomotso Mose

Name: Khomotso Mose.
Died: May 3, 2024.
Age at death: 18.
Cause of death: Decapitated.
Location: Leshikishiki, Limpopo, South Africa.
Disability: Wheelchair user.

Details:
Khomotso was found decapitated near a local tavern. His mother was arrested on suspicion of having killed him.

Case Status:
Stephina Sefekwane Chuene (Mother), charged with murder.

Sources:
“This is insane”: Woman arrested over gruesome murder wheelchair-bound son
Limpopo mother up for murder of wheelchair-bound son
Mother arrested after disabled son found with his head chopped off
Limpopo mother arrested for son’s gruesome murder
Woman arrested for ‘decapitating’ her wheelchair-bound son to apply for bail
Mum ‘chops off’ son’s head: Family speaks!
Mother who allegedly cut her disabled son’s head off remains in custody

Hannah Mathura

No Photo Name: Hannah Mathura.
Died: March 12, 2024 (Body found; died seven years previously).
Age at death: 18.
Cause of death: Gunshot.
Location: Valsayn, Trinidad and Tobago.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
Hannah had not been seen for seven years, but had not been reported missing, when her brother finally reported her death to the police. When they investigated, authorities found Hannah’s bones in a shallow grave on her family’s property. An autopsy established that Hannah had been shot in the head. Police believe that Hannah’s eight siblings were also abused, and were too afraid to come forward until recently. Family and neighbors say the children had been isolated and not allowed to socialize with anyone outside the house, or even to receive Christmas presents from relatives.

Case Status:
Hannah’s parents, age 66 and 62, were arrested.

Sources:
Autopsy shows Hannah was shot in the head – Trinidad and Tobago Newsday
Autopsy confirms Hannah Mathura died unnaturally
Two arrested as police investigate Hannah’s homicide
Hannah shot in the head
Autism Memorial: Hannah Mathura
Couple in custody: Suspects in Hannah Mathura case assisting police
Teen’s body found buried at Valsayn House of Horrors – Trinidad and Tobago Newsday

28-year-old woman

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: January 15, 2024.
Age at death: 28.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Saint-Herblain, Nantes, Upper Brittany, France.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
This 28-year-old woman, who had just lost her mother, was killed by her father in a murder-suicide. He left a note stating that he killed her because he did not want her siblings to have to care for her.

Case Status:
Her father, deceased.

Sources:
Un père tue sa fille handicapée de 28 ans puis se suicide près de Nantes
Un homme tourmenté étrangle sa fille handicapée avant de se suicider à Saint-Herblain