Florida Mom Allegedly Forced Daughters to Drink Bleach, Killing 3-Year-Old

Joanne Zephir allegedly blamed a "voodoo spell" for the incident on Sunday, which claimed the life of her 3-year-old daughter and injured her 8-year-old after the trio ingested bleach

Photo: Osceola County Corrections

A Florida mom of two has been arrested after she allegedly confessed to forcing her daughters to drink bleach, killing one of them, police said.

Osceola County Sheriff Marcos R. Lopez told reporters during a press conference Tuesday that 36-year-old Joanne Zephir blamed a "voodoo spell" for the incident on Sunday, which claimed the life of her 3-year-old daughter and injured her 8-year-old after the trio ingested bleach.

Authorities said Zephir and her two children were located outside a Poinciana, Fla., church that same day.

Zephir was found unconscious in the driver's seat of a vehicle, while the toddler was unresponsive in the back seat. Deputies discovered the 8-year-old girl out in the roadway near the church entrance, authorities said.

The family was taken to a local hospital, where the younger juvenile was pronounced dead. The older girl was released to family members, and the suspect was taken into custody by the sheriff's department for an outstanding warrant in Orange County for attempted murder and aggravated battery.

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Prior to the incident involving her daughters, Zephir allegedly confessed to a family member about the Orange County occurrence.

She reportedly planned to turn herself in, but wanted to spend time with her daughters before surrendering to authorities.

According to the sheriff's office, she called the family member several hours later and confessed to killing her younger daughter and said "the 8-year-old was also going to die, and then she would kill herself," Lopez said.

Zephir also allegedly admitted to law enforcement she made her kids drink bleach from a "makeshift drinking glass," before choking her 3-year-old.

"The reason for doing this to her children was because the victim in Orange County must have put a voodoo spell on her, making her harm her children," Lopez said.

Zephir is being held at the Osceola County Jail. It wasn't immediately clear if she had retained an attorney.

Authorities have charged her with one count of attempted murder and one count of aggravated child abuse.

Lopez confirmed murder charges are pending dependent upon the medical examiner's findings.