Mother, grandma burn child in voodoo ritual

Voodoo dance. Photo source unknown.

Another burn victim at the hands of a couple of sick f#cks.

A New York mother and grandmother were charged with setting a 6-year-old girl on fire during a voodoo ritual that caused life-threatening burns over 25% of the child's body, prosecutors said on Thursday.

Frantzcia Saintil suffered physical and emotional scars after she was set ablaze with lighter fluid and kept at home overnight until another relative insisted she be taken to the hospital, prosecutors said according to a Reuters report.

"During the performance of a Haitian voodoo practice known as 'Loa,' the child's mother is alleged to have intentionally poured an accelerant over her young daughter's body, causing her to be engulfed in flames,"Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said in a statement.

"Despite the child's cries for help and the severity of her injuries, both defendants are accused of failing to seek immediate medical attention for the child," he said. "Instead, they allegedly washed her down with cold water and placed her in bed, where she was fortunately discovered the following evening by another relative who insisted that the child be taken to the hospital," he said, noting that the child has suffered permanent scarring--both physically and emotionally."

Jesus F. Christ.

According to the charges, Frantzcia was home with her mother, Marie Lauradin, 29, grandmother, Sylvenie Thessier, 70, and a family friend known as "Sketch" (sounds sketchy to me), and that pursuant to the mother's belief in the voodoo practice, Lauradin poured an accelerant on her head and in a circle on the floor. She then allegedly set the circle on fire and placed Frantzcia, who was naked, inside the ring of fire, at which point the accelerant on her body ignited and flames engulfed her. Although Thessier and Sketch were present in the room, neither intervened, even after Frantzcia cried out for help.

Lauradin reportedly told police that she had been preparing rice on the stove and accidentally spilled boiling water on the child and that she did not see any burns on her daughter until she was at the hospital. Thessier claimed to be in the bathroom at the time of the incident.

Lauradin was charged with first-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child, and if convicted faces up to 25 years in prison. Thessier was charged with first-degree reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, facing up to 7 years if convicted.

The girl was admitted to the William Randolph Hearst Burn Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital on Feb 6, with second- and third-degree burns covering 25% of her body, including her face, torso and legs, ABC News reported. As part of her treatment, she was placed in a medically induced coma and hooked up to a respirator.

Frantzcia was placed in foster care following her release in May, and authorities say she eventually told her foster family a different account of what occurred.

What this story is lacking is an explanation of the ritual and it's purpose. According to several websites on the subject, Loa means "mystery" in the Yoruba language and stands for a group of spirits of the voodoo religion that serve as intermediaries (sort of like angels and saints).

Sources: Reuters, ABC News
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