Police bodycam footage captured the horrifying moments after a 12-year-old girl allegedly stabbed her nine-year-old brother to death in their Oklahoma home.
The siblings’ mother April Lyda told police she was asleep upstairs when her daughter woke her up shortly before midnight to say she had stabbed her brother, Zander.
The girl, who has not been named by police, is heard sobbing and repeatedly apologizing as officers arrived at the downtown Tulsa home on January 5.
The boy was rushed to the hospital and taken into surgery, but died from his injuries shortly after 2:30 a.m. CT.
The edited video, obtained by The Law & Crime Network, begins with the girl running downstairs as she yells, ‘I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.’
As the girl is taken out of the home by police, Lyda appears by the door frame saying the boy has stab wounds on his chest.
The edited video begins with the girl running downstairs as she yells, ‘I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry’
The handcuffed girl then leads police to the knife she supposedly used to stab her brother, which she had thrown out of a window
Mom April Lyda with her son, Zander, on a GoFundme appeal for the family after his 12-year-old sister was accused of stabbing him to death
‘You better pray to God he f*****g lives,’ she tells the girl.
‘I’m so sorry, momma,’ the girl replies. ‘I don’t know what happened.’
The handcuffed girl then leads police to the knife she supposedly used to stab her brother, which she had thrown out of a window.
Once in the patrol car, the girl asks if she’s going to jail as an officer tries to console her saying it’s too soon to tell.
‘I ruined my life,’ she says. ‘I ruined my whole future. It’s all my fault.’
At one point, the girl appears to pray as she says: ‘God, please help me. What the f***. Please. F*** please.’
While still in the car, she asks, ‘Are the handcuffs necessary? I’m a good child.’
The officer tells her it is given the nature of the incident.
The footage then skips to the police station, where an officer takes pictures of the girl’s arms and hands.
Lyda is then interviewed by police, and says her daughter has never displayed aggressive behavior in the past.
‘I just don’t understand why she would have so much anger toward him,’ she says. ‘Especially at bedtime.’
At the end of the video, as two officers are talking, one says to the other: ‘You just wonder what’s going on in a 12-year-old’s mind.’
A motive for the killing remains unknown.
Zander Lyda who was stabbed to death in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on January 5 this year
A 12-year-old girl, who has not been identified, is accused of stabbing her younger brother, Zander Lyda, to death in Tulsa on January 5. Pictured: Zander Lyda
‘I ruined my life,’ she says. ‘I ruined my whole future. It’s all my fault’
The footage then skips to the police station, where an officer takes pictures of the girl’s arms and hands
The girl is in juvenile custody with the Tulsa Police Child Crisis Unit in charge of the investigation.
The Tulsa Police Department told DailyMail.com on Wednesday they are not making any comments on the case as it involves a juvenile and is under seal, per the District Attorney’s office.
Lyda’s friends have started a GoFundMe to help the family with the costs of what they describe as an ‘unexpected tragedy.’
‘The loss of her 9 year old son to her 12 year old daughter has left this mother and their family completely devastated and confused, we are still trying to figure out why this happened,’ the page reads.
‘Her daughter was a well behaved child with no prior history of behavioral problems. Her son Zander was the sweetest boy who had the biggest smile, he loved to ride his bike, play fortnite, hang out with his best friend or just run errands with his mom.’
The page adds that Lyda is still raising a three-year-old son as a single parent, and the funds will be used for their move to a new home, as well as legal fees, bills and a car repair.
A shot from a news report after Zander Lyda was fatally stabbed on January 5. When officers arrived, firefighters and paramedics ‘were already on scene and performing CPR to a 9-year-old male victim,’ police said
Pictured: The Family Center for Juvenile Justice in Tulsa, where the 12-year-old girl was being held after the fatal stabbing in January
Lyda left a message on the GoFundMe in which she discusses the footage, saying ”it’s not appropriate for them to post that.’
She goes to claim that the girl started having behavior issues when ‘she was put back on a medication she was off for over a year,’ adding that ‘it wasn’t psych meds.’
Lyda also wrote: ‘I can’t get into details because I’m not sure what all I’m allowed to share just yet.
‘She has never even yelled at me, she was happy and energetic loves school, she is not mentally ill & has not been diagnosed with anything. She has been very well behaved the entire 6 months she has been gone and yes I’m very supportive of her and love her very much, obviously there is a lot of healing that we both need before we can ever live together again.’
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