Nola Dinkins: Mom confesses to killing her three-year-old daughter, court documents show
Nola Dinkins: Mom confesses to killing her 3-year-old daughter, court docs reveal
New details have emerged after Darrian Randle, 31, and Cedrick Antoine Britten, 44, of North East, Maryland, were charged in connection with the death of three-year-old Nola Dinkins.
NEWARK, DE - Maryland court documents obtained by FOX 29 provide the heinous details involving the death of three-year-old Nola Dinkins.
Timeline:
New Castle police arrive at alleged abduction location
On Tuesday at around 9:30 p.m. court documents say Darrian Randle called the New Castle Police Department to report that her three-year-old daughter was kidnapped at gunpoint on the 500 block of Gender Road in Newark, Delaware.
Officers then initiated an investigation and an Amber Alert was issued.
Nola Dinkins update: Mom, boyfriend arrested in connection with suspected child's death
A mother and her boyfriend have been arrested and charged in connection with the suspected death of three-year-old Nola Dinkins.
Maryland state police arrive at the child's home
According to court documents, police asked Maryland State Troopers to check out Randle’s home and the child’s last known address on the 300 block of Elk Nest Drive to see if the child was not mistakenly left at home.
Upon arrival, MDSP spoke with the homeowner, and Randle’s boyfriend, Cedrick Antoine Britten.
Britten said the three-year-old left with her mom and was not inside the home.
The state trooper told Britten they were there due to an abduction allegation. According to court documents, Britten did not seem phased by the reason for the police presence.
The state trooper noticed cameras outside the home and asked to see the footage of Randle and her child leaving.
Though Britten struggled to pull up any video and said half of the cameras were down, court documents say he was able to show the officer footage of Randle getting into the driver's seat of a car and leaving.
Nola Dinkins was not seen in the surveillance footage.
Troopers find suspicious evidence
According to court documents, Britten allowed troopers into the home, and they were unable to locate the child.
When officers told the boyfriend that the child had been taken at gunpoint, he had a ‘neutral reaction,’ and said he did not know where she was.
A state trooper noticed the odor of bleach while inside the home.
Once detectives arrived at the scene, they spoke to Britten and advised him of the importance of the situation, to which they said he had told them ‘he was calm because he used to be special forces in the military and has dealt with human trafficking before,’ the court documents stated.
Detectives noticed a pair of blue nitrate gloves on top of the trash can downstairs and another pair in Randle and Nola’s room upstairs.
Britten gave detectives permission to check his vehicle. Upon opening the trunk, they noticed a child-sized blanket with a reddish-brown smear on it, consistent with blood. Britten said the blanket was not his and said he received it from a stranger he met in a park last summer.
Randle confesses
After Delaware law enforcement conducted a recorded interview with Randle, she confessed that the initial story about the abduction was false, court documents confirmed.
The mom confessed to hitting her three-year-old daughter with a belt 15–20 times during the day Monday while at their home on Elk Nest Drive.
She said that after she finished beating her child, the three-year-old fell to the ground and was not moving.
Randle said when she picked her up, she realized that she was not breathing. She then immediately called for Britten, who was home at the time of the incident.
Randle said that her boyfriend attempted CPR on the child but eventually realized she was deceased.
According to court documents, Randle said that she became upset and she and Britten put Nola in Britten’s BMW.
She said the two drove around for a while before returning to the residence.
Upon their return, documents say Randle placed her daughter inside a suitcase that belonged to Britten.
Randle told detectives she placed the suitcase on the basement steps and checked on it once throughout the night. She asked Britten to take Nola somewhere and said that he removed the suitcase containing the child, and later sent her a picture of a park.
Remains found in Cecil County
On Wednesday, police interviewed Britten, who showed a map of where he believed Randle disposed of the child’s body.
Law enforcement arrived at the 60th block of Dune Drive in Cecil County, Maryland where they found a suitcase and remains inside consistent with a child.
What we know:
Once detectives determined Darrian’s story was false, they canceled the Amber Alert.
Randle, 31, and her boyfriend, Britten, 44, both of North East, Maryland, were arrested and charged in connection to the investigation.
Nola Dinkins: Mom, boyfriend charged in suspected death of 3-year-old girl
A mother and her boyfriend have been arrested and charged in connection with the suspected death of three-year-old Nola Dinkins.
Randle has been charged with first- and second-degree murder, first-degree of child abuse resulting in death of a minor under thirteen, and other related criminal charges.
Britten has been charged with accessory to first- and second-degree murder after the fact, failure to report child death, and other related criminal charges.
Randle is currently in custody at the Baylor Women’s Correctional Institute in New Castle on $1,000,000 cash bail, awaiting extradition back to Cecil County, Maryland.
Britten was released from custody on a $75,000 cash bond and home detention following a bail review in the District Court for Cecil County Thursday morning.
MDSP is awaiting positive identification of the remains, pending autopsy results.
The Source: The information in this story is from Maryland State Police and New Castle County police.