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Children’s book author, engineer husband exposed for double life in house of horrors

A Florida children's author known for writing stories about friendship has been indicted along with her husband on charges of abusing and neglecting an adopted child, authorities announced.

Jennifer Wolfthal, author of “True Friends,” and her husband, Joseph Wolfthal, a Lockheed Martin engineer, were charged with aggravated child abuse on January 13 under a plea agreement. Pleaded guilty to child neglect causing bodily harm. By Fox News Digital.

According to the plea agreement, Jennifer Wolfthal will be sentenced to 12 years in prison and her husband will be sentenced to 10 years.

A spokesperson for the State Attorney's Office for Florida's 18th Judicial Circuit said, “This plea and sentencing agreement ensures that the Wolfthals will spend significant time in prison, while at the same time repaying their already traumatized lives.'' “This will protect victims from the stress of having to testify,” he said in a statement. Fox News Digital. “The State Attorney's Office ensured that law enforcement and the child's new guardian supported this sentence before agreeing to it.”

Children's book author and husband charged with abusing their children

Joseph and Jennifer Wolfthal pleaded guilty on January 13 to charges of aggravated child abuse and neglect of a child with great bodily harm. (Seminole County Sheriff's Office)

The investigation into the couple began in 2021 after their adopted daughter, who was 8 years old at the time, lost consciousness due to organ failure and was taken to hospital with injuries all over her body. The couple also had two adopted children, ages 9 and 11.

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“Because of my height and weight, [the girl]”The swollen bruise on the back of his head, a lacerated lip, and a broken tooth were unlikely to have been caused by a loss of balance and fall,” the police report said.

Read Jennifer Wolfthal's plea deal: App user click here

Read Joseph Wolfthal's plea deal: App user click here

While the girl was hospitalized, investigators visited her parents' home and found two other children with “malnutrition, bruises, and symptoms of lack of care,” the statement said.

Georgia couple accused of sexually abusing adopted child, husband bragged about sexually abusing son: Report

Police said the doorknob in the child's room was installed backwards and the lock was on the outside.

In an additional raid, authorities said: “My body remains flat on the bed the entire time. I was not allowed to move or say anything. Now I am unable to do anything else. We found more than 1,100 sentences saying, “You can write about this with me.'' I'm a fool. ”

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children's books

Jennifer Wolfthal, author of a children's book titled “A Real Friend,” will be sentenced to 12 years in prison. Her husband faces 10 years in prison. (Amazon.com)

The book is still available for sale on Amazon, but reviewers have embedded links in the comments to news articles about the allegations against the author.

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Authorities also shared that all three of the Wolfthals' adopted children were subject to other horrific stories of abuse. As a result of the investigation, the children were moved to live with another family.

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Fox News Digital's Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.

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