A 12-year-old girl in Tennessee is facing first-degree murder charges after allegedly suffocating her 8-year-old cousin, Demeria Hollingsworth, during a dispute over an iPhone.
According to Inside Edition, the incident occurred at their grandmother’s house, where both girls were spending the summer.
“Last time I saw my baby, she was smiling, giving me kisses, telling me she would see me when it’s time for her to come back home,” a heartbroken Rayana Smith, Demeria’s mother, told WREG-TV. “She’s never coming back home.”
Smith said she received a call about her daughter and niece fighting over an iPhone and now regrets not intervening sooner.
“They were having fun for the summer, and I didn’t think she would kill my baby,” Smith continued.
The home’s surveillance cameras captured the tragic event, prompting prosecutors to seek trying the 12-year-old as an adult.
The footage reportedly shows the cousin suffocating Demeria with clothes on the bed before cleaning up the scene, repositioning Demeria’s body, and pretending nothing happened.
“I consider this to be one of the most disturbing, violent acts committed by either an adult or juvenile that my office has prosecuted,” said Prosecutor Frederick Agee.
Authorities have charged the cousin, whose identity has not been publicly revealed, with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence.
The cousin is set to turn 13 next week and faces significant legal consequences for the alleged crime.
