A mother and her roommate stand accused of starving one of her children to death, chaining the girl and her younger siblings to radiators and leaving their broken bones untreated.
Relatives told reporters of the all-consuming influence wielded by the pair’s spiritual leader, Emanyel Rezireksyon Kris — a name which in Haitian Creole means “Christ is here.”
Two women pleaded not guilty to charges of child endangerment a week after an 8-year-old was found dead in their apartment from severe malnutrition and an untreated broken leg and her injured and emaciated siblings were removed alive.
The women, who were both born in Haiti but came to the U.S. at a young age, radically altered their lifestyles about two years ago when they came under the sway of a man they described as their religious leader, according to friends and acquaintances.
Two women arrested after one of their daughters died of malnutrition were under the influence of a small religious sect, relatives say.
The leader of the group, Emanyel Rezireksyon Kris, has not been charged. His name, drawn from Haitian Creole, roughly translates to “Christ is here.”