The father of one of the two girls found dead inside a set of suitcases left in an Ohio park has broken his silence after the girls’ mother was arrested and charged with their murders.
“I just feel useless,” the grieving father told FOX 8 News. “I couldn’t save my daughter.”
The man spoke to the station on condition of anonymity after he was approached by news crews at the Cleveland park, where he’d gone to remember his late daughter.
He also spoke to WOIO, who identified him as DeShaun Chatman.
On Monday, March 2, a man walking his dog stumbled upon one of the suitcases, opened it, and saw a human head. A second suitcase was located nearby in the same park.
Authorities have identified the girls as Mila Chatman, 8, and Amor Wilson, who was 10. Their mother, Aliyah Henderson, was arrested late Wednesday.
Henderson, 28, is charged with two counts of aggravated murder for her daughters’ deaths, Us Weekly confirmed with investigators.
Mila and Amor were half-siblings, police said.
Mila’s father told FOX 8 he hadn’t been allowed to see his daughter in four years, saying he felt “iced out” as a father. He said he repeatedly tried to gain custody of the girl to no avail.
He also said that Amor’s father tried being in her life but was similarly denied visitation.
“When it was something so simple. Just give me her. You’re feeling stressed, give me her,” Mila’s father told FOX 8. “I’ve been trying to get her for six years. You’ve been ducking me. You told me I was too family oriented. That’s why you ain’t giving my daughter. Been tried, tried, tried. Then talked to CPS numerous occasions.”
He claimed that Child Protective Services wouldn’t remove the girls from their mother’s custody.
“I don’t know how long she’s been gone, how long she’s been dead. I don’t know how long she’s been missing, but it could have been prevented,” the angry dad added.
“These were two young lives with their entire futures ahead of them,” Cleveland Division of Police Chief Dorothy Todd said in a statement to the media.
“Our detectives worked tirelessly and with great care to identify those responsible. Investigations of this nature require patience, precision, and discretion,” Todd continued. “Unlike what is often portrayed on television, every detail cannot be shared publicly. Certain information must remain confidential to protect the integrity of the investigation and ensure justice for these victims. That careful and methodical work allowed our detectives to develop the evidence needed to make quick identification of a person of interest, ultimately resulting in an arrest.”
Henderson was arrested at her home, which is not far from the park where she allegedly dumped her daughters.
A third child who was living with Henderson is now a ward of the state. The child was said to be healthy.
A cause of death for Mila and Amor is still pending and their investigation into the murders remains ongoing.
If you suspect child abuse, please call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or visit ChildHelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential, and the hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
