A couple accused of starving their 4-year-old son to death over two years in Harlem, New York City, and confining their children in a feces-covered apartment face murder charges.
According to a news release, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. stated Nytavia Ragsdale, 26, and Laron Modlin, 25, were indicted on Wednesday, Nov. 6, after their son Jah’Meik Modlin died approximately 5:50 a.m. local time on October 14, 2024.
He weighed only 19 pounds when he died, had malnutrition, dehydration, and famine, and “had almost no body fat,” according to the announcement.
The pair, who have also been accused of abusing their three other children aged 5, 6, and 7, have been “charged in a New York State indictment with Murder in the Second Degree, four counts of Assault in the First Degree, Manslaughter in the Second Degree, Criminally Negligent Homicide, and four counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child,” according to the release.
According to court documents and testimonies, Modlin contacted 911 about 7:42 p.m. on Oct. 13, claiming that the victim was unresponsive. Jah’Meik was “taken to the hospital and was given end-of-life care,” according to officials, before dying in the early hours of the following morning.
Jah’Meik and his siblings arrived at the hospital with “layers of dirt on their skin and feces matted in their hair,” according to the announcement.
Authorities allege that Ragsdale and Modlin “actively starved their children for approximately two years while purchasing food for themselves on a daily basis.”
The family’s flat was stated to feature a “working refrigerator that contained fresh produce,” but the door faced the wall, making it impossible for the children to open.
“Any cabinet containing food had a zip tie on the handle,” the announcement stated.
Officials stated that one of the property’s three bedrooms was “covered in feces,” and that the floor could not be seen due to the amount of grime and excrement on it. The walls were coated with feces to the height of a child.
According to court documents, the room in question had the single lock, which was “placed on the outside, allowing someone to lock an individual inside of the room.”
“The only other items in the room were a few pieces of broken furniture, as well as a mattress, propped on its side and covered in feces,” investigators said in the announcement.
According to the records, the children were not in school and had not visited a doctor in over two years, and their parents limited communication with friends and family members to phone or video chats in order to “hide” each child’s “deteriorating conditions.”
According to the announcement, Jah’Meik’s siblings “remain hospitalized for malnutrition,” have “displayed very limited fine motor skills, and were incapable of holding any utensils or feeding themselves,” but these abilities are gradually returning as nutrients are introduced into their diet.
According to the press release, District Attorney Bragg stated, “The death of Jah’Meik Modlin, an innocent four-year-old child, is a tragedy that has left this city scarred.” He endured a protracted and agonizing death, hungry alongside his elder brothers and secluded in the heart of Harlem, which is a stain on our collective conscience.”
“Today his parents are indicted for allegedly killing him through extreme physical neglect and persistent abuse with depraved indifference for his life,” Bragg informed the jury.