On January 20, 2020 Rachel Henry, 22, killed her three children in Phoenix, Arizona, officials say.
Rachel was charged with three counts of first-degree murder. Rachel admitted to killing her 3-year-old son and her two daughters, ages 1 and 7 months. The dead kids are identified as: Zane Henry, three-year-old male, Miraya Henry, one-year-old female, and Catalaya Rios, seven-month-old female.
Rachel says she smothered and suffocated her children, one by one, before lining up their bodies on a living room couch. Rachel wrestled with her daughter before placing her hand over the girl’s mouth. As the child kicked in protest, Rachel’s 3-year-old son yelled at her to stop and tried to punch her in the face, according to the report.
After the girl stopped breathing, Rachel left her body in a back bedroom officials say.
Rachel then chased the boy but was interrupted when her husband and aunt returned home. Rachel took the boy into a back bedroom and changed his underpants, officials say.
She then put the boy on the floor, “straddled him with one of her legs and placed her hand over his nose and mouth,” before using her weight on the boy to smother him, official documents say.
Rachel “described singing to the 3-year-old as he scratched her chest and pinched her.” Rachel then gave her 7-month-old daughter a bottle. After the child fell asleep, Rachel “sang her a song as she placed her hand over her face and impeded her breath,” according to the probable cause document.
Rachel says she then placed all of the children on the living room couch to make it appear they were taking a nap. She reportedly did not tell any other family members what happened.
Emergency responders were called to the home, the children were pronounced dead on scene. Rachel was arrested and her bond is set at $3 million.
