A 13-year-old Pennsylvania girl confessed to killing her mother and stabbing her 11-year-old brother during an argument, allegedly telling police officers, “It’s my fault that my mother died.” .
Lataya Powell allegedly admitted to becoming violent when officers responded to a residence on South Sherman Street in Wilkes-Barre on Friday around 12:30 p.m. Local 21 reported.
“I killed my mother. If my mother were alive, I would never forgive her,” she said, according to the criminal complaint.
Police said the mother, later identified as Tameeka Tucker, suffered apparent injuries to her torso and head.
Meanwhile, her 11-year-old brother was found lying on the couch in the living room with a stab wound to his back, according to news outlets. His injuries were not considered life-threatening.
Powell was taken into custody at the scene and charged as an adult with murder, two counts of aggravated assault and tampering with evidence. Local 21 reported.
When police arrived, they found no knives or cutting instruments, but they did notice padlocks on drawers and cabinets in the kitchen. According to WBRE.
One of them appeared to be broken, with a padlock lying on the floor, the newspaper reported, citing an arrest affidavit.
When confronted by police, Powell said he threw the weapon at a neighbor’s doorstep, WBRE reported.
“It’s my fault that my mother died,” she told police, according to an affidavit cited by the newspaper.
“I don’t understand how people can do something like this and not feel bad about it,” she was quoted as saying.
Video posted by news outlets shows the girl telling a reporter that she felt “regret, guilt and self-loathing” before being put into a police car.
A neighbor who found the knife on his front porch said he was working in his backyard at the time of the gruesome crime.
“I wish I wasn’t here because I don’t know what’s going to happen. But I think something good might come out of this and I might get the help I need,” said the unidentified person. said the woman. Local 21 News reported.
“We pray for the family. We are sorry that this happened,” the neighbor added.
The murder suspect is being held in the Luzerne County Jail awaiting a preliminary hearing on April 10th.
