I was strangled. Okay, by who? My mom. Step up. Step out, ma'am. It was just after 6:00 a.m. in Tampa. 18-year-old Natavia was counting down the final days to her graduation, but instead, a scream cut through the morning stillness because inside that quiet home, someone she trusted most was about to change everything. Tampa Police, 911. What is the address of the emergency? I [clears throat] was just trying to get strangled. Okay, do you have an unit letter or number? Unit Okay, and what's going on? >> [clears throat] >> I was just trying to get strangled. But I just woke up from passing out. Okay, I'm sorry. What happened? I was strangled. Okay, by who? My mom. I'm sorry, by who? My mom. Is she still there? Yes. How long ago did this happen? It just happened like like 34 minutes ago. I JUST WOKE UP. OKAY. WHERE IS YOUR MOTHER NOW? She's outside my room. What Natavia endured wasn't just painful, it was a betrayal that cut deeper than anyone could imagine. I know you're in the home. Just come to the door. >> 344 Did you guys attempt to call back cuz now the lights are out? I think I hear them screaming upstairs but I can't tell. Trapped inside, Natavia's voice broke through the walls. A scream so full of fear it could have been her last. What was it? I couldn't tell if it was screaming upstairs or where it was. Look, the couches are open on the wall on the wall. Can you see this? Look at the pool. See this? Yeah. Almost like They're not barricaded. We both You heard screaming? Yes. Did you hear screaming for help? Or something. He said it fell over. Who raised the bar, mate? Tampa police. Come downstairs. Tampa police department. Hi. Good morning. When the mother finally opened the door, what stood on the other side wasn't just a scene, it was a story no one was ready to hear. She's home alone. Everybody? Okay. Can you come outside for me real quick, please? For what? Because we got a call for service here. Not here. Lady, don't play the game. You even do that? Don't do this. Rebel. Ma'am, stop. Stop it. You're not going to stop us from entering the house. I didn't do anything. Lady, ma'am, stop fighting. Ma'am, open the door. Stop. All right, we'll just go in here. 31 coming to the front. Ma'am, stop resisting us. Stop resisting. We're here for a lawful reason, okay? You got that? Sit you down. Look on my Facebook. >> Sit down. Over here. You don't want Come up. Stand up. Stand up. You don't have to be aggressive. I didn't No, do me a favor. As the officers rushed forward, [music] they were met with cold defiance, and in the seconds that followed, the horror started to get real. Hey, hey, hey, stop. Hey, do me a favor. Just hang out with her by my car. I got to go upstairs, man. In the car, please. Figure it out. Just keep an eye on this. Man, we got somebody on the floor, bro. She looks 10-7, bro. The officer froze as he stumbled upon an unconscious body sprawled across the floor. Oldest daughter. Upstairs. Upstairs. What? No, no, she's in the kitchen. Kitchen. Okay. Kitchen. Yeah. No response at all. Found her here. Possibly choked out. Maybe a very long faint patient. All right, all right, right there. let them do their job. Yeah. Try to keep as many people out as we can while fire do what they got to do and then we're going to probe for solid. The mother stood there silent, [music] cold, a shadow over a scene no one should ever witness. But sadly, this is not just one story. In 2022 [music] alone, Florida saw over 24,000 cases of child abuse. And heartbreakingly, [music] nearly three out of every four were caused by the very people meant to protect those children, their own parents. Step up. Oh my goodness. Step out, ma'am. I'm going to Come on. Come on. Come on. She come back in? No. Huh? No. What's wrong with you? What's wrong with you? Hey. Please stop. Please stop acting like this, please, so I can do your search. For a second, it looked like the mother was possessed by something beyond the reason. Meanwhile, the officer stood just steps [music] away struggling to make sense of the chaos unfolding before their eyes. Ma'am, I need you to Yeah. No. Go. Get one of them to come over here and stay with her. You said act like you're going No. No, she was She was talking off at the door and she started making something about being super friendly, taking something out of what she said. Something about we'll we'll just have fun. Yeah. So, check her pulse. Don't let her fall. Got you. All right, go put it back again. The ruthless mother continued her wild and unhinged display of defiance in every movement. Hey serge, it's not looking good, buddy. Really? Okay. No, I already left. She uh she resisted us opening the door. Brows went hands-on, we snatched her out and put her out here. >> act like this while you were No. No, she was she was uh talking to us. We had a a rapport. Then she started making something about being signal 20 or they're taking something. I forget exactly what she said. Okay. Something about maybe somebody was We just have fun. Yeah. So, who is it? She has a three, four, and a nine-year-old. Three kids only. She gave me all the names of the kids. >> she does she does? >> Yeah. I don't know who this is. She's not nine years old. Did she say anything to my penis about Hey, listen, she came my house No. No, something to the effect of they're with my head or something like that when we took her out of the car and dragged her out. I dumped her in the car, had somebody watch her, and I went with Brows, and that was it. The officers were working hard to piece together what was happening, but with every [music] passing minute the chaos grew louder. Under Florida law, lying during an investigation isn't just wrong, it's a crime, one that can lead to fines or even jail time. Come on. Can I hold your hand? How you doing? My house. Your house? Did you take anything or anything like that? No. No, ma'am. What happened to your child? Not yet. We're just coming to get her. Young lady, what's your name? Letitia Summerville. And uh you live here? How long have you lived here? A few months. A few months? Okay, who do you live here with? Me and my children. Despite being the primary suspect in her own daughter's death, her cold composure was nothing short of unsettling. Your children? The small children? Like the babies? I see one or two little babies. Uh what about the the other person there? No, I have three kids. You have three kids? How old are your kids? How old are they? Nine, three, and four. Four? Okay. So, who's here today with you? Me and my three kids. You and your three kids? Okay. The three- and four-year-old, were they upstairs? Okay. And then where's your nine Where's your nine-year-old? They're all upstairs. They're all upstairs? They were all up there. Okay. We just got up and I was going to give them a bath. Who uh who's in the kitchen? Somebody's in the kitchen a little bit older than nine, though. They're not nine years old. I couldn't even tell you. You couldn't even tell you? I only have three kids. Okay. Well, there's Okay. All right, hang tight. Hang tight. Hang tight. Do you want to see the fire department? Do you want them to check you out? I'm fine. I just want my keys. She's fine. I don't know what happened, like If you're talking to me, I didn't hear you. They can. She stuck to her story of having just three kids, a classic move perpetrators use when confronted. But the story she'd clung to so tightly soon started to fall apart. Who went to the hospital just now? Do you know? Who Who was that? Oh, you have four kids? Okay. What was that daughter's name? How old is she? She doesn't want anything. I'm fine. Are y'all okay? Why are y'all here? If you can just look at her and make sure she's You don't want us to check you out? No, I'm fine. I need you Everything's fine. Everything's fine. Thank you. I appreciate it. Initially, she said she had three kids. Okay. And she's pretty adamant about that. And now she has four kids. So, asked her, "Who's that person that went in the ambulance?" She's like, "Oh, that's my other daughter." And that's what this person is, Latavia Samary Sanders. So, Samary is the middle name, S A M A R I. I thought it was S A M A R I, but she told me that She says, "Samari." I'm like, "Okay, I'm thinking she's not maybe missing an A, but There was only one way to get real answers from her now, a full and thorough investigation. You're refusing to be seen? Okay. Sit right here. Face the car. Yes, sir? Yep. All of a sudden, for someone who had been eerily calm and composed, everything shifted. Her demeanor cracked. Panic [music] crept in, and she began demanding medical attention. You just told him you didn't want to see him. Hey. Now she wants to see you guys. Straight up. My foot. Okay. Okay. They They could treat it. When you get there, there's a doctor there that could treat you. Well, we can't treat it. I know ma'am, but I see the scrape and stuff like that. That's what I'm saying. They're They're going to They could x-ray, they could do all that stuff there. >> need the x-ray. I just need this looked at on my toe. I mean, what do you want me to I don't think I can give you the bandage for that, ma'am. I'm not a hospital. I'm just I'm going to treat it. Thank you. Which is it? She just wants us to look at it. All right. We're going to look at it. It was a desperate [music] distraction, a small story to hide a much bigger truth. He looked at it. >> Right. What do you want them to do? Uh he just said that I could go to the ER and they'll give you x-rays. >> we'll do that at the jail. They have Yeah, the Orient jail has a whole medical staff there that could >> We're not We're not going to the hospital. Especially if you're lying. Yeah. Officers sealed [music] her fate then and there and there was no turning back for her. Ma'am, step out. You can go out there through that door over there. Right here. In the end, Rotesha was charged with resisting an officer with violence, a third-degree felony, and aggravated battery with great bodily harm, a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years. After a medical examiner ruled it a homicide, her charges were instantly elevated to first-degree murder. Of an 18-year-old loved one, she was allegedly killed by her mother. >> She was medicated here, and we thought that her moving would have her a better start. But, sometimes people need their medicine in order to function, and a lot of people don't take that serious. And I do wish that Florida does find ways to help people more with mental health. According to the latest available information, Rotasha Silveus has been deemed competent to stand trial and is expected to appear in court this spring. And that's a wrap on this chilling case. If you want more gripping true crime stories, hit like, subscribe, and turn on notifications. Don't miss what's coming next. >> [music]