Brenda Emile, left, and Miller Costello, were both charged with aggravated murder after police found the body of their 'extremely malnourished' three-year-old daughter. Photo / AP
Brenda Emile, left, and Miller Costello, were both charged with aggravated murder after police found the body of their 'extremely malnourished' three-year-old daughter. Photo / AP
A Utah couple accused in the death of their toddler daughter taunted the malnourished child with food and attempted to cover her injuries with makeup, prosecutors said in charges filed.
Authorities say they found cellphone videos that show three-year-old Angelina Costello's condition growing progressively worse over the year and ahalf before her "extremely malnourished" body was found at the family's Ogden, Utah, home.
Parents Brenda Emile, 22, and Miller Costello, 25, who have ties to the Romanian gypsy community, were both charged with aggravated murder, which carries the possibility of the death penalty, the Daily Mail reports.
Brenda Emile, charged along with Miller Costello, with aggravated murder in the death of their 3-year-old daughter Angelina Costello, appears in the 2nd District Court in Ogden, Utah. Photo / AP
Their lawyer, James Retallick, didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.
The videos found on the parents' phones show Emile and Miller apparently presenting the girl with food, and then taking it away and disciplining her, police said in charging documents.
Angelina was found July 6 at the family home in Ogden after her parents called police to report she wasn't breathing.
Her body was covered with burns, cuts and bruises, some of which looked new and others that appeared to be in various stages of healing, police said.
"Officers on scene immediately recognised the child victim had bruising, contusions, lacerations, burns, open sores and abrasions all over her face, hands, legs, head and neck," a probable cause statement reads.
Emile later told police she used a layer of makeup to conceal some of her daughter's injuries "so they didn't look as bad," charges state.
Two other children were removed from the house and given to state child protective services, police said.
Officers searching the couple's cellphones later found pictures and videos taken between January 2016 and June 2017 that show the child obviously upset, police said.
In one video the girl's father used the feet of an infant to kick the girl in the face, prosecutors said.
Police say Costello acknowledged he knew Angelina was in danger of dying if she didn't get medical attention, but did not take her to the doctor.
Miller Costello and Brenda Emile, right, charged with aggravated murder in the death of their 3-year-old daughter Angelina Costello, appear in the 2nd District Court in Ogden, Utah. Photo / AP
He said his wife, who cared for their children during the day, told him Angelina's siblings had injured her but Emile didn't want to take her to a doctor because she feared a police investigation and her children being taken away.
Costello and Emile have self-proclaimed ties to the transient Romanian gypsy community, according to KOMO News.
Police found a significant amount of cash on the couple during their arrest.
"[Costello's] wallet had approximately US$1,200 in cash and over US$8,000 in a cashier's check. Brenda had US$36,190 in a purse purchased from Nordstrom's on June 17, 2017 for approximately US$2,000," the probable cause statement reads.
The couple are being held in the Weber County Jail without bail. They are expected to appear in court on Thursday.
