A Michigan nanny has been charged with stabbing stabbing to death the grandfather of the 3-year-old girl she was caring for and injuring the child and her uncle in a subsequent attack.
Samantha Rae Booth, 35, is charged with first degree murder, child abuse, assault, and three counts of resisting a police officer.
According to the Royal Oak Police Department, the child’s mother contacted David Ong, 83, Friday night and asked him to check on the welfare of her daughter. The mother was out of town, and the toddler was under the care of a nanny — Booth — while she was away.
Police did not say what concerns initially prompted the mother to ask Ong to check on his granddaughter.
When Ong did not report back to the mother “in a timely manner,” she asked her brother-in-law to check on both her father and daughter. He arrived at the home just before 9:30 p.m. — about 90 minutes after Ong got the call from his daughter — and entered the home.
“He heard noises coming from the basement and called out to the nanny but failed to get a response,” police said. “He encountered the nanny in a manic state covered in blood and his father-in-law lying on the floor with severe injuries.”
The brother-in-law picked up his niece and fled the home, all the while fending off “continued attacks from the nanny until he was able to escape.” Booth pursued him outside, armed with a screwdriver, until he encountered a group of people who led him and his niece inside their home while he called 911.
Once he was safe inside with the little girl, Booth ended her pursuit, “stripped off all her clothing and dropped the screwdriver.” She fled police when they arrived but was quickly brought into custody.
Both the little girl and the uncle suffered minor injuries and were treated at a hospital and released.
The Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office said the family had known Booth, who had no known criminal history, for about two years and that she had cared for the toddler in the past without incident, WDIV reported.
Police found psychedelic mushrooms and marijuana in the nanny’s purse and said she made incriminating statements while being transported to the police station, the outlet said.
“Booth stated, ‘I f*** him the f*** up — and yes, I did it … God, it was too easy,’” police said.
Booth was denied bond when she was arraigned on Tuesday. The video arraignment was delayed for an hour when Booth refused to put on clothes or get up off the floor of her cell to appear, WWJ reported.
She is due in court again on November 7.