Krista Jean Miller (left) and Robin Willette Rumsey
A mother and her friend were arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of duct-taping a teenage boy, forcing him to inhale marijuana and pouring hot sauce in his eyes as punishment and may face additional child-abuse charges, reports the Miami Herald.
Salt Lake City residents Robin Willette Rumsey and her friend, Krista Jean Miller, allegedly began abusing Rumsey’s 14-year-old son, who is now in his father’s custody, two years ago, beginning with pouring hot sauce into his eyes as punishment for breaking a glass dish. On separate occasions the women tried to force the boy to smoke marijuana, poured alcohol over his face and held him in a basement.
“This is not discipline that any child should have to go through,” West Valley Police Sgt. Jason Hauer said. “It’s definitely abuse.”
But Miller’s foster mother, Marsha Christensen, said she believes the allegations were fabricated as a part of a custody battle over the teen.
“This case is full of mysteries. There are a lot of questions coming up that I don’t have answers to, mostly because the case is still active,” Hauer said Thursday. “The arrests made two days ago with Krista and Robin are probably just the beginning of other allegations that are going to come to light in this case.”
The case has been under investigation for six months and the women face many more years behind bars if found guilty.