MIAMI, FLORIDA: Nataliia Marina, a Miami resident, is facing serious charges after she resisted her arrest and jumped into a body of water while holding her 3-year-old nephew. The British woman was eventually taken into custody and was further charged with ‘child abuse and resisting arrest’ after jumping naked into the bay.
As per Miami Police Department, the 27-year-old was originally reported for criminal mischief after she allegedly brought things inside a building and caused damage to floodlights along the Baywalk near Brickwell Avenue.
Who else was present at the time of Nataliia Marina's arrest?
Police spokesperson Captain Freddie Cruz said in a press conference that they responded to a call at 8.30 am on Thursday, September 7. The accused was with her sister and nephew when cops arrived at the scene.
Nataliia allegedly tried to to run away from police and stripped herself, before leaping into the bay while holding her nephew in her arms and swimming towards Brickell Key.
According to the initial investigation, Marina is likely responsible for damaging up to 14 floodlights, but now she is involved in “very serious charges.”
Captain Cruz said it was “disturbing” to see the video of the 3-year-old crying after his aunt without any clothes “actually threw [her nephew] in the water with her."
Is Nataliia Marina mentally stable?
The captain also talked about the state of mind of the accused; Cruz said that cops evaluated Marina and decided that she was going to face the music. In other words, she won't be just involuntarily detained for a mental health exam under the Baker Act.
“There’s nothing normal about this,” Cruz observed. “She was evaluated and I guess the determination was that she was in a normal state of mind, that she was okay to face charges and not be Baker Acted.”
On being asked about the boy’s health, the captain replied, “He is okay, so that’s where we have a great outcome.”
“We need people to get involved because, again, a couple more minutes in the water, and we could have had two fatals,” Cruz said.
“At the end of the day, we have to help each other out. I don’t know what would go through someone’s mind recording a child drowning and how they can live with themselves.”
Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation records showed that Marina was booked on Thursday at 5:06 pm on multiple charges, reports Law&Crime.
This included child abuse without causing great bodily harm, a third-degree felony, and misdemeanor criminal mischief, and resisting arrest without violence. Marina's bond adds up to $6,500.
