Status – Disability Day of Mourning

Preetika Venkatesh

No Photo Name: Preetika Venkatesh.
Died: June 13, 2024.
Age at death: 3.
Cause of death: Strangled.
Location: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
When Preetika was three years, ten months old, her mother brought her to the hospital, unresponsive, and Preetika was declared dead from strangulation. Police, who interviewed Preetika’s mother, said, “Upon questioning, the mother said she was worried about how her daughter would lead her life as she was autistic and hence, she decided to murder her.”

Preetika leaves behind her twin sister, who is also autistic, but with less pronounced autistic traits. Her death followed an incident in which Preetika’s sister was accepted to a preschool, but Preetika was rejected.

Case Status:
Ramya Venkatesh (Mother), charged with murder.

Sources:
Autism Memorial: Preetika Venkatesh
Bengaluru woman kills autistic daughter in fit of rage, arrested
Bengaluru mother kills young autistic daughter, surrenders
Bengaluru mother kills autistic child, surrenders before police
Mother Strangles Autistic Toddler to Death in Bengaluru, Held
Bengaluru Shocker: Woman Strangles Three-Year-Old Autistic Daughter to Death, Leaves Confession Note at Crime Scene; Arrested
Bengaluru Shocker: Fearing autism, woman murders 3-year-old speech-impaired daughter, rushes her to hospital later
Mother strangles speech-impaired toddler daughter to death in Bengaluru, surrenders
In Bengaluru, mom kills 3-year-old autistic girl

57-year-old woman

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: June 5, 2024.
Age at death: 57.
Cause of death: Asphyxia.
Location: Nommay, Doubs, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France.
Disability: Autism.

Details:
This woman’s mother found her lying on the ground, unresponsive, head covered with a plastic bag and a ligature. Her husband was trying to hang himself nearby; she reacted quickly, cut the rope, and called emergency services. Authorities say that when they questioned the father, he admitted to having already tried to strangle his daughter two days before because he thought that she was too much of a burden for him and his wife.

Case Status:
Her father, age 87, was charged with murder.

Sources:
Doubs : un homme de 87 ans mis en examen pour l’assassinat de sa fille autiste
France: Inculpé à 87 ans pour l’«assassinat» de sa fille autiste
Doubs : un homme de 87 ans mis en examen pour l’« assassinat » de sa fille autiste
Autism Memorial: 57-year-old woman

Dimple Meena

Name: Dimple Meena.
Died: May 20, 2024.
Age at death: 10.
Cause of death: Poisoned.
Location: Hindaun, Rajasthan, India.
Disability: Deaf.

Details:
Dimple was brought in to the hospital with severe burns. She had been doused with gasoline, her family said, by two strange men. After some days, Dimple died; but an autopsy established she had not died from her burns–she had been poisoned. Police believe that, after an argument with her mother, her parents set Dimple on fire, and then forced her to take poison as she lay helpless in her hospital bed.

Case Status:
Karan Singh (Father), charged with murder.
Kamlesh (Mother), charged with murder.
Rajesh Meena (Uncle), charged with murder.

Sources:
Dimple Meena Murder Case: Was the 10-Year-Old Deaf and Mute Girl Killed by Her Parents? Activists Suspect Foul Play, Demand CBI Investigation
Family held for brutal murder of deaf-mute girl

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

Devassia Kumbukkal

No Photo Name: Devassia Kumbukkal.
Died: May 12, 2024.
Age at death: 76.
Cause of death: Head injury.
Location: Udayagiri, Andhra Pradesh, India.
Disability: Unspecified.

Details:
After a family argument, Devassia’s nephew allegedly attacked him with an axe and a heavy stone, causing fatal head injury.

Case Status:
Shinemon (Nephew), charged with murder.

Sources:
Disabled man hacked to death by nephew in Kannur

Mr. Chan

No Photo Name: Chan (given name or surname; other names unknown).
Died: May 12, 2024.
Age at death: 32.
Cause of death: Carbon monoxide poisoning.
Location: Kwai Chung, Hong Kong, China.
Disability: Intellectual disability.

Details:
Mr. Chan’s aunt was worried about him and his mother because she had found out that he was absent from work. Using a spare key to enter his apartment, she found him and his mother dead, with a burned-out charcoal cooker and suicide note. She was reportedly depressed because she had been diagnosed with heart disease and thought she could not take care of her son.

Mr. Chan worked in a sheltered workshop.

Case Status:
Ms. Wong (Mother), deceased.

Sources:
Depressed mother kills intellectually challenged son in murder-suicide
Murder and suicide in Kwai Chung
Parental stress linked to Kwai Fong murder-suicide

Kathrikutty

No Photo Name: Kathrikutty.
Died: May 3, 2024.
Age at death: 82.
Cause of death: Throat cut.
Location: Muvattupuzha, Kerala, India.
Disability: Unspecified; bedridden.

Details:
Kathrikutty died from having her throat cut. Authorities say that her husband was angry that she was bedridden and needed care, so he attacked her with a knife and killed her.

She was the mother of five children.

Case Status:
Joseph (Husband), charged with murder.

Sources:
Elderly man slits bedridden wife’s throat, arrested
Frustated man murders his octogenarian, bedridden wife in Kerala
Murder: Elderly Man Kills Bedridden Wife by Slitting Her Throat
Invalid elderly woman murdered by husband in Muvattupuzha

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

Unknown Man

No Photo Name Unknown.
Died: May 2, 2024.
Age at death: 30s.
Cause of death: Stabbed.
Location: St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
Disability: Wheelchair user.

Details:
This man, whose name has not been released, was allegedly fatally stabbed by his partner.

Case Status:
Tina Jackson (Partner), charged with murder.

Sources:
Woman charged in fatal stabbing Thursday inside St. Louis home
Charges filed in deadly stabbing in south St. Louis

Sheryl Seitz

No Photo Name: Sheryl Seitz.
Died: April 30, 2024.
Age at death: 58.
Cause of death: Septic shock, two broken hips, pressure sores.
Location: Arvada, Colorado, USA.
Disability: Mobility impaired, required caregiver.

Details:
Emergency services were called to Sheryl’s home, where they found her dying on a filthy air mattress. She had been kept in an RV without running water or a proper bed, and was suffering from two broken hips and badly infected pressure sores. Sheryl died the next day, and her caregivers were arrested.

Case Status:
Brian Seitz (Son), charged with crimes against an at-risk person resulting in death and tampering with evidence.
Laura Prats (Son’s girlfriend), charged with crimes against an at-risk person resulting in death.

Sources:
Jeffco man, his girlfriend arrested in death of mother found with two broken hips
JCSO Arrests Two Suspects for Crimes Against At-Risk Person Resulting in Death