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In a disturbing case that has come to light in Texas, a mother is accused of subjecting her 3-year-old son to unnecessary medical procedures, including surgery and the use of a wheelchair and feeding tube, in what authorities suspect is a case of Munchausen by Proxy.
Kaitlyn Rose Laura, 30, faces charges of aggravated assault and causing serious bodily harm to a child following months of alleged abuse. This was reported by CBS News.
Sheriff Bill Waybourn expressed his concerns to KFDM-TV News, stating, “This is a case of a narcissistic individual exploiting their child to gain sympathy by portraying them as fragile, resulting in the child enduring severe suffering.”
“The child now bears scars from unwarranted surgeries, and he will eventually need to understand the reason behind them. This could lead to long-lasting emotional trauma,” Waybourn added.
Despite Laura’s claims that her son had cerebral palsy and was unable to walk or eat solid foods, medical professionals and a teacher observed that these invasive treatments were unwarranted, according to a warrant issued by the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office.
The allegedly deranged mom even started three phony gofundme.com furndraising pages for her son.
Laura’s behavior appears to mirror Munchausen by Proxy, which involves parents subjecting their children to intrusive but unnecessary medical treatments to gain sympathy and attention.
Laura allegedly claimed complications during the boy’s birth in August 2022, including a lack of oxygen, caused his disabilities, although the assertions were not supported by medical records.
She claimed he suffered from cerebral palsy, could not eat solid food and was continuing to deteriorate, authorities said.
After Laura harassed doctors and staffers at several Texas hospitals, the boy finally had a feeding tube implanted in May.
The first report of Laura’s alleged medical abuse was made to Child Protective Services in June, but in December, another feeding tube was still implanted.
At some point, medical staffers and the tot’s teacher reported that the boy was able to eat solid food and was able to get around without a wheelchair or a “gait trainer” walking device, KFDM reported.
Laura took the boy out of school and continued to seek medical intervention — until authorities finally took the toddler from his mom on Valentine’s Day, which led to further investigation and her arrest last month.
Authorities are still investigating Laura’s fundraising efforts and said a separate probe is investigating possible related Medicaid fraud, CBS News said.