Girl Found Dead After Disappearance in Pennsylvania River

A nine-year-old girl was discovered deceased early Thursday morning in the Youghiogheny River, located near Smithton, Pennsylvania, approximately 40 miles from Pittsburgh. Authorities reported that her foster mother’s girlfriend has been detained and charged with her murder.

The girl, identified as Renesmay Eutsey, was found partially submerged in the river. She and her foster caregiver had reported her missing the previous afternoon, about 11 hours after she was last seen around 2 a.m.

Investigators interviewed the three other children living in the home — two girls and a boy — who revealed disturbing details. They claimed to have seen the girl’s foster mother, Kourtney Malinda Eutsey, kill Renesmay and place her body in a plastic container the night before her body was discovered. One child expressed heartbreak, saying, “I’m never going to see my baby sister again because she’s in heaven.”

Another child recounted hearing Renesmay crying outside her room on Tuesday night and witnessing Eutsey and her girlfriend yelling at her and kicking her in the stomach. When police questioned the children, they confirmed that Eutsey’s girlfriend punched the girl when she saw her watching, before allegedly stuffing her body into a trash bag and a plastic tote.

According to police reports, Eutsey admitted to investigators that Renesmay was burned in the bathtub last week, which caused an infection. She claimed that the girl vomited and choked on Tuesday night, dying despite her attempts to save her. Eutsey said she was too frightened to call 911, fearing trouble over the burn and Renesmay’s emaciated condition.

Eventually leading authorities to the riverbank, Eutsey was charged with homicide, with prosecutors citing “physical abuse and neglect” as the cause of death. While her girlfriend has been identified, she has not been charged with any crime at this time.