Evil mum 'killed 5-year-old son and abused his corpse because he ate snacks in bed'

A 48-year-old woman has been charged with the murder of her 5-year-old foster son, whose body was found in a sewer drain in Ohio. Pammy Maye, 48, is accused of killing Darnell Taylor in February 2024. Maye was the legal guardian of the young boy and had been Darnell's foster mother since May 2023. The young child's body was discovered nearly 48 hours after a statewide Amber Alert was issued, and a frantic search was launched to find the missing boy.

He died from asphyxiation, authorities have said. However, his alleged killer - who appeared to admit to the killing in police bodycam footage - may not be competent to stand trial, it has been reported. For years, her lawyers have argued she was unfit to stand trial due to reasons of insanity. Since Maye's first court appearance in February last year, her attorney hoped to enter a not guilty by reason of insanity plea on her behalf. In August last year, he said he was convinced Maye has "deep-seated mental health issues."

She is suspected of suffocating the child in their south Columbus home. Her husband phoned 911 hours later, which led to the issuance of a statewide Amber Alert.

According to court records, Maye held her hand over her husband's mouth when he tried to make the initial 911 call, saying she "had a plan". Maye then abruptly left the home, authorities said, and an Amber Alert for her and the child was issued two hours later.

She later allegedly told police she had been upset with the young boy for eating snacks in his bed. Bodycam footage caught her saying, "He had a granola bar and peanut butter crackers on his bed. He had a knife to open up the box."

Her vehicle was located hours later in a suburb of Cleveland, but there was no trace of either Maye or the 5-year-old. The child's biological family was notified that he was missing, authorities said.

Around 36 hours later, Maye was discovered in Cleveland, apprehended, and arrested. During her police interview, she revealed the location of Taylor's body.

Last week, she was extradited back to Columbus from Cleveland and appeared in municipal court on charges of murder, endangering children, and kidnapping. She now faces charges of aggravated murder, three counts of tampering with evidence, and abuse of a corpse.

During a hearing on August 14 this year, a local judge accepted a psychiatric evaluation report that concluded Maye is not currently competent to stand trial, but the report also suggested she can be restored to competency through treatment.

"There's some indications, and I don't know if they're true or not, that she might be malingering a little bit," the judge said. "The evaluator leaves the room, and she gets up and acts like she's alert. I don't know what we do for a lack of cooperation."