India Tribune Newsdesk
Santa Ana, Ca: A 48-year-old mother is accused of a heinous crime after a three-day vacation to Disneyland with her 11-year-old son.
Saritha Ramaraju, 48, has been charged with one felony count of murder for slitting her son's throat, killing the boy after they went on a vacation to Disneyland during a custody visit. She has also been charged with one felony enhancement of personal use of a weapon, a knife.
She faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life if convicted on all charges, a statement from the Office of the District Attorney, Orange County, California said on March 21
Ramaraju, who moved out of California after divorcing the boy's father in 2018, was staying with her son at a motel in Santa Ana for a custody visit. During the visit, she bought three-day passes to Disneyland for herself and her son.
According to prosecutors, Ramaraju killed the boy on March 19The, the day he was scheduled to be returned to his father. Then she called 911 to report that she had killed her son and taken pills to kill herself.
Santa Ana police found the victim dead on a bed inside a La Quinta Inn, according to officials with the Orange County District Attorney's Office. Authorities noted in the news release that the boy's throat had been slit. A large kitchen knife was found inside the motel room, which was purchased the day before, prosecutors said.
Details of the horrific scene that police had to investigate after they responded to the mother's 911 call were provided. The boy who "appeared dead for several hours" before 911 was notified was found with multiple stab wounds "among Disneyland souvenirs." Body-worn camera footage showed police arresting the mother. In the video, a female police comments, "She has blood on her hands," while placing handcuffs on Ramaraju. The 48-year-old mother allegedly called first responders to report "she had killed her son."
Prosecutors said Ramaraju had moved out of state after divorcing the boy’s father in 2018. During the custody visit with the boy, Ramaraju had bought three-day passes to Disneyland for both of them.
Ramaraju was arrested on suspicion of murder, including child endangerment, torture and aggravated mayhem charges, after she was released from a hospital on March 20. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life.
Notably, Ramaraju had been engaged in a custody battle for her son with her husband Prakash Raju since last year. The fight came as a result of Ramaraju's allegations that he was making medical and school decisions by himself, without consulting her inputs. She also alleged that her ex-husband had issues with substance abuse.
Ramaraju had accused her former husband of a "history of substance abuse issues" and added he "gets very aggressive under the influence of alcohol, drugs and smoke." She accused him of having "severe control issues" and said their son "is very scared to talk to mother as he'll get into trouble with dad."
Meanwhile, Saritha’s husband Prakash Raju had accused his ex-wife of "citing completely false and untrue abuse and substance abuse issues," the report added.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said: "The safest place for a child should be in their parents' arms. Instead of wrapping her arms around her son in love, she slit his throat and in the cruelest twist of fate removed him from the very world she brought him into."
"The life of a child should not hang in the balance between two parents whose anger for each other outweighs their love for their child," Spitzer said.
(Compiled from various sources)
