Facebook/Aija Brown Nariah Brown pictured on her mother's Facebook page.
Nariah Brown is a 17-month-old toddler who died after being sexually assaulted at a Virginia motel, her mother, Aija Brown, has told the media.
The Richmond Police Department said in a statement that Brown was assaulted inside of the Colony House Motor Lodge in Midlothian Turnpike on May 8. Brown succumbed to her injuries on May 10 at Virginia Commonwealth University’s medical campus, authorities have said.
Aija Brown told NBC Richmond that she left her daughter with her boyfriend. A man she had been dating for a year and who she has known since the fourth grade. Nariah Brown’s exact cause of death has not been revealed.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Aija Brown Says Her Last Words to Her Daughter Were, ‘Baby, I Love You’
In an interview with NBC Richmond, Aija Brown said that her last words to her child were, “Baby, I love you’…and I’m going to let you go with him… and I’ll be right back.” Aija told the station that she had left her child as she needed to give another family member a ride.
When Aija returned to the motel room, she discovered her daughter had been horrifically assaulted and was suffering injuries including punctured lungs and broken ribs. Aija Brown says, “I was in panic mode, disgusted, in total shock… that anything happened to her… I love my daughter…but I just want parents, anybody… keep your children close.”
In a separate interview with WTVR, Aija said that she was giving her baby CPR as she was being rushed to a local hospital. Aija said, “I was giving my baby CPR in the back seat. Because I thought she wasn’t breathing.” While in an interview with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Aija Brown described her final moments with her daughter saying, “When I held my daughter in my arms for the last time, I said, ‘Baby, I love you. And I’m going to let you go with Him.’ I’ll be right behind you. I’ll be up there, and I’m going to hold you again.”
2. A So Far Unnamed Person Is in Custody in Relation to the Crime
A person-of-interest has been taken into custody in relation to Brown’s horrific death. WTVR reports that the person is being held by U.S. Marshals on a parole violation. That person’s identity has not been revealed. Anybody with any information regarding the assault is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 804-780-1000.
3. Nariah Brown’s Funeral Will Be Held on May 19
A vigil for Nariab Brown was held at Forest Hill Park on May 14 while the toddler’s funeral will be held at Mimms Funeral Home in South Richmond on May 19. At the May 14 vigil, mourners released purple and teal balloons into the sky. Aija Brown told WRIC through tears at the event, “I love you butt butt and mommy misses you and I’ll see you soon.”
Photographs from the event published by the Richmond Times-Dispatch showed New Life Deliverance Tabernacle Pastor Robert Winfree leading Nariah Brown’s relatives in prayer. The pictures show Aija Brown clutching a large teddy bear as family members mourned the loss of her daughter.
The newspaper also reported that the executive director of United Communities Against Crime told those gathered, “We want to tell the world about little Nariah. She only stayed for 17 months, but made a big impact.”
4. A GoFundMe Page Set Up to Help Nariah Brown’s Family Has Surpassed its Stated Goal
GoFundMe/Nariah BrownThe image featured on Nariah Brown’s GoFundMe page.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Brown’s family to pay for funeral expenses. At the time of writing, that page has surpassed its original goal of $3,500. That page was set up by Brown’s aunt, Denisha Smith.
Denisha Smith described her niece as “an outgoing, happy and loving baby” who had her life “snatched away from a mother, grandmother, grandfather, aunts, uncles and a host of family who loved her deeply.” The page concludes with the lines, “Nariah Ivy Brown will be truly missed. Please continue to keep her family in your prayers during this incredibly tragic time.” Speaking to WRIC, Aija Brown said that her daughter was affectionately known by the nickname “Butter Bean.”
5. Nariah Brown Was Born 3 Months Premature
Aija Brown told WTVR that her child had been born three months premature. Aija Brown said that her daughter spent the first months of her life fighting to live. She told the station, “I was gonna’ always do anything to protect her. She never did anything to anybody. She wasn’t a mean baby. She was loving. She would go up to strangers hug them and smile.”
In the same interview, Aija Brown said her daughter loved Disney and was just beginning to learn how to speak saying, “She loved puppy dog pals and loved dogs. She’d say ‘woof-woof.’ She was just really learning to talk.”
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