A suburban Chicago mother was ordered held without bond Tuesday on the charge that she colluded with her severely autistic 14-year-old son's caretaker to murder the boy.
Dorothy Spourdalakis, 50, and Jolanta Agata Skrodzka, 44, were both charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of Dorothy's son Alex Spourdalakis, NBC Chicago reports.
Alex Spourdalakis was found dead in his bed inside a second-floor River Grove, Ill. apartment he shared with his mother and the caregiver by his father and uncle on Sunday, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Prosecutors say the two women had grown frustrated with the teen, who required around-the-clock care, and had plotted to kill him using sleeping pills, according to CBS Chicago. When that didn't work, the boy's mother allegedly stabbed him four times in the chest before slitting his wrists. Skrodzka, Alex's godmother, also allegedly stabbed the boy multiple times.
The two women were also in the apartment at the time of Alex being found dead and were reportedly lying in a semiconscious state after taking sleeping pills in an attempt to take their own lives. The women were taken to a hospital for treatment before being questioned by police.
According to ABC Chicago, the Department of Children and Family Services had previously been in touch with Dorothy Spourdalakis and offered her services to help with her son's care in January, which she refused. She also participated in an Autism Media Channel video on YouTube (embedded below) pleading for help seeking additional treatment for the boy.
In a statement reported by AgeOfAutism.com, the Autism Media Channel said they were "deeply saddened by the loss of Alex, a bright 14-year-old who had so much potential - Alex just needed appropriate medical care and somewhere safe to live." They added the family's plight was an example of "the failings of the medical system when trying to deal with individuals like Alex."
Police were also familiar with the family, having been called to the apartment seven times in the last seven months to help restrain Alex, CBS reports.
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