LOCAL NEWS

Family, friends hold vigil for infant siblings killed in Rocky Mount

Tags: vigil, child abuse

Posted April 30, 2022 11:13 p.m. EDT
Updated April 30, 2022 11:14 p.m. EDT

By Leslie Moreno, WRAL multimedia journalist

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — Family and friends gathered Saturday in Rocky Mount to hold a vigil for the two children that died after being found unresponsive inside a car earlier in April. ... Attendees cried, sang and lifted each other in prayer.

3-month-old Kamryn and his 1-year-old sister Noel were found unresponsive inside a vehicle on the 900 block of Drew Street last Saturday. ... The father of the 1-year-old was emotional. He wasn’t ready to talk but shared his favorite pictures of his daughter.

“I’m just glad they came. Once everything dies down I’m gonna put the stuffed animals in a bag and I’m going to donate to the family to let them know how the community really feels,” said Sharon Haris, a neighbor. ...Officials said the children were found with burns and bruises. Both children were pronounced dead at the hospital. ... Haris, who organized the vigil, said she didn’t know the children or family, but as a grandmother herself she was touched deeply.

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Rocky Mount police arrested and charged the mother and her boyfriend for the death of both children. ... 21-year-old Zharia Noel and 21-year-old Ahmene Butler were charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter due to negligence and two counts of felony child abuse. ... Noel and Butler were both bonded out.

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