An Indiana woman has been charged with the alleged drowning of a four-year-old girl in a bathtub, purportedly in an attempt to baptize her. The incident, which took place in September 2023, only came to public attention after a probable cause affidavit was filed in December 2024. The accused, 39-year-old Nakia Martin, was arrested in December following an investigation into the child’s death.
Martin, a cousin of the child’s mother, was babysitting the children in Spring, Texas, while the mother was in Indiana. The affidavit states that Martin sought assistance after finding the child foaming at the mouth and cold to the touch. On the morning of September 9, 2023, Martin contacted a family member and then the authorities after noticing the child was unwell.
Upon their arrival, the police discovered the child in a bedroom, where she was pronounced dead at the scene. The affidavit also noted the presence of water puddles around a large, dirty Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom adjacent to the bedroom where the child was found.
Martin, appearing distressed, informed the police that she had bathed the child and her sibling the previous night, applying lotion to them. She admitted to being in the bathtub with all the children, including the deceased. However, her responses were vague and inconsistent when questioned about the timing of the bath and whether she had reported a drowning.
The police also interviewed the two other children, aged 6 and 8, who provided a more detailed account. They mentioned “something happened, the Devil,” and referred to the lotion applied by Martin as “blessing oil.”
The children’s mother was contacted, who disclosed that her surviving daughter had told her that Martin was attempting to baptize them on the night of the incident. The mother had interacted with Martin and the children via a FaceTime call the day before the incident and had noticed Martin’s unusual behavior and religious rantings.
In a subsequent interview, the surviving daughter alleged that Martin had held her sister under the water, causing her to bleed, and had also tried to drown her. The girl claimed that Martin had instructed her to keep the incident a secret and had threatened her with Hell. The boy provided further disturbing details, stating that he had witnessed his sister struggling to breathe and pulling Martin’s hair in the tub. He alleged that Martin had pushed his sister back under the water and had prevented him from helping.
Martin was arrested in December 2024 and extradited to Harris County, Texas, where she was charged with capital murder of a child under 10 years old. Her next court appearance is scheduled for March 20. The delay in Martin’s arrest was attributed to the time taken for interviews related to the investigation and the autopsy report on the girl, according to a spokesperson for the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.