Vayda-Kay Vasquez child abuse death: Kellie Jean Barthel, Douglass Township, Michigan babysitter high on meth & rum punches toddler to death.
A Douglass Township, Michigan babysitter as been accused of killing a toddler by ‘using her as a punchbag’ after binging on rum and meth.
Vayda-Kay Vasquez died from a fractured skull weeks before she was due to turn two years old. The victim was last filmed alive sitting on the front seat of a car driven by Kellie Jean Barthel, 36, of Stanton, when a security camera at a gas station recorded the babysitter picking up a bottle of Captain Morgan rum on March 1, MLive reports.
The next morning, Kellie Barthel‘s boyfriend arrived at her house where she was babysitting, to find a lifeless child, soaked in blood, lying on the bed next to the accused.
In a 911 call, Barthel could be heard downplaying the severity of the child’s injuries as she argued with her boyfriend. During the call, the boyfriend initially said that the child was not breathing and was covered in bruises.
‘At one point during the 911 call, Kellie Barthel gets on the phone and reports the child is fine, is breathing and just had a bloody nose and they can send an ambulance if they wanted,’ Detective Brian Siemen told the court. ‘Barthel and (the man) could be heard arguing over the wellbeing of the child and Barthel at one point tells him to leave her home.’
Trevor Rogers, a state trooper, described to the court of finding a ‘disturbing scene’ at the home. According to Siemen, Barthel ‘threw Vayda to the floor’ in front of the officer and ‘told him to do something’. However at that point, the child was ‘long dead’ and her body had gone cold.
‘The victim’s body was covered from head to toe in bruises,’ Siemen said. ‘EMS staff advised that it appeared to them that the child was used as a punching bag and it was very apparent that the child had been deceased for quite some time.’
Bloody crime scene:
A forensic team which examined the crime scene said that there was blood everywhere in the house. Starting in a craft room, which was in a disarray with flower pots tipped over, they found blood on the floor, along with soil.
Blood spatter was also found on the furniture. A trail of blood led throughout the house into the bathroom. A bloody towel draped over the door of the bedroom was found, while more stained towels were discovered in a kitchen trash can.
After her arrest on March 2, Barthel tested positive for methamphetamine and THC and had alcohol in her blood. After interrogation, Barthel claimed ‘spanking’ the child five times on the backside after she urinated on the floor. She also said the victim slipped and hit her head but was not injured.
However, an autopsy revealed the child’s skull was shattered by repeated blows to the back of the head, not consistent with a fall.
Vayda Vasquez born to drug addict parents:
Vayda’s parents lost full custody of her more than a year ago and her maternal grandmother, Tonia Rose. had custody at the time of the girl’s death. Rose in an interview with WOOD-TV revealed the babysitter was a family friend.
Christopher Sanchez and Danielle Maybee, Vadya’s parents were arrested for having heroin and fentanyl in the home where they were caring for her in August 2018, according to a Michigan Department of Health and Human Services report. Sanchez was allegedly so high he tried to feed the baby with an empty bottle, the report claims.
Of note, Sanchez is officially listed as jobless and homeless according to WOOD-TV.
‘We are happy, she’s in jail, but we really can’t wait until the verdict comes down that she’s guilty,’ paternal grandmother, Shawnerie Russell told via mlive.
‘She should never see daylight again,’ Russell said.
‘Vayda-Kay was a perfect baby,’ the grandmother added.
Come Friday, Barthel was arraigned on charges of murder and first-degree child abuse at Montcalm County court, where she appeared via video link from prison. She was ordered to remain in custody. Barthel is due in court again on April 29.
Read an obituary for the victim who would have turned 2 last Wednesday: ‘If Vayda gave you a hug, there was always a pat on the back to go with it.’
