S.C. police say mother, boyfriend charged in disabled child's death

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ROCK HILL (AP) - A South Carolina woman and her boyfriend were arrested and accused of killing the woman's disabled daughter and hiding her body inside a dresser drawer, authorities said.

Jackleen Elizabeth Mullen, 23, and Audrevious Jarrell Williams, 26, were charged Wednesday with homicide by child abuse or neglect, news outlets reported.

Rock Hill police responded to the couple's home Tuesday night after being alerted by York County Sheriff's Office deputies about a possible child fatality. Details on how deputies learned of the child's death weren't immediately released.

Rock Hill police Det. Keenan McCrorey said Mullen and Williams initially told police Mullen's daughter, 4-year-old India Martin, was in North Carolina with family.

When police returned with a warrant, they found India's body inside a dresser drawer in the couple's room, McCrorey said.

India was a special-needs and disabled child, McCrorey said. Details about India's death weren't immediately released.

McCrorey said Mullen "showed no emotion" when her daughter's body was found by police.

Mullen and Williams were denied bond.

The couple were also ordered to cease contact with their other children.

Mullen and Williams have a 1-year-old child. Mullen has another child, age 4, and Williams has a 7-year-old, The Rock Hill Herald reported, citing court statements.

It's unclear whether the couple had an attorney who could comment on their behalf.

Mullen pleaded guilty in 2017 to felony child neglect after she gave birth to a baby that tested positive for cocaine in 2016, The Rock Hill Herald reported.

Mullen also has a 2014 conviction for larceny and on Tuesday she pleaded guilty to forgery. She was sentenced to 18 months probation.