WASHINGTON – Police have arrested a Landover, Md., woman who they say tried to kill an 8-year-old boy.
Prince George’s County police say they were called to the 6700 block of Munsey Street in Landover at about 8 a.m. and learned that Helen Marie Newsome had broken into a home there and attacked the boy, who has been identified in media reports as Jacob Soliz-Amaya.
ABC7 reports Newsome, 26, had been hiding in Jacob’s closet for more than 12 hours before the boy’s father left for work on Saturday, according to police.
The 26-year-old then left the closet and began attacking Jacob, who had been sleeping, ABC7 reports. At first, Newsome allegedly tried to smother the boy, but stopped when he reportedly head-butted her. She then allegedly used a dumbbell to hit Jacob in the head, but he managed to get away, according to ABC7.
The boy escaped to a neighbor’s house and was treated at a hospital and released, police say. He reportedly has eight or nine staples in his head.
Newsome was arrested at her Landover home later the same morning and charged with first-degree attempted murder. Police say that she confessed to her involvement in the assault and is being held on a $500,000 bond.
A police captain tells ABC7 Jacob is a “hero” for fighting off Newsome.
The boy’s father, Andy Amaya, previously had been in a romantic relationship with the suspect, police say.
“I’m assuming that she was trying to hurt me the best way possible, and what better way to hurt a parent than to hurt their kid?” Amaya tells NBC Washington.
See more in the video below from NBC Washington:
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