63-year-old Avantae Deven, resident of Fayetteville, a city in the US state of North Carolina, was arrested and charged with killing two of her adopted children. Police discovered their bodies inside a burn barrel. A burn barrel is a metal container used for burning waste materials, such as leaves, paper or household garbage.
Reports by US-based media outlets said that Blake and London Deven, who were adopted by the sexagenarian, were not seen for the last couple of years. London was last seen in 2019 and Blake hasn’t been seen since 2022. London, a female child, was never reported missing by Avantae and she reported Blake, a male child, missing only earlier this year.
It was a surviving foster child that called North Carolina law enforcement and alerted them of the situation in 2023. Police began investigating multiple homes the family had lived in and found a burn barrel with partial human remains inside it, along with remains at multiple residences. Forensic tests conducted found the remains belonged to a female aged between 15 to 19 years and a male aged between 7 to 10 years.
The investigators believe that Deven abused the children and killed and dismembered them. Local news media outlets also reported that the female child died of starvation and neglect. Authorities are conducting tests on the boy’s remains.
Authorities this week revealed that Avantae kept the siblings, along with three other adopted children, in brutal conditions. She adopted Blake and London in 2013 and 2011 respectively.
’Kept In Small Room, Without Food’
Reports by US news media outlets revealed that the siblings were given little to no food and kept in a small, dark room.
The children claimed that they were forced to write hundreds of apology paragraphs for their behaviour to “earn” food and were beaten so badly that they sometimes needed medical help. At a press conference, police announced that they have forensic evidence supporting the allegations of torture, starvation, and isolation.
”We believe he (Blake) was mentally abused and starved. His body could not sustain the inhumane treatment. Then, Avantae developed a plan to hide Blake’s remains. She forced another person in the household to participate,” Sgt. Locklear said. London Deven died ”in the same painful way that Blake died, starvation and neglect,” lead investigator sergeant Jeff Locklear said.
Deven faces two counts of first-degree murder, concealment of death, kidnapping and felony child abuse, according to the Fayetteville Police Department and is being held at the Cumberland County Detention Center with no bond.
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