COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia couple has been arrested after police said their children were found to be “severely malnourished” and some even had Rickets.
According to an incident report from the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called to Children’s Hospital of Georgia for a child who was severely malnourished and was met with a representative from the Department of Family and Children’s Services.
The deputy reported that the child was on a respirator and had since been diagnosed with Rickets.
“Rickets is a condition that causes children to have soft, weak bones. It usually occurs when children do not get enough vitamin D, which helps growing bones absorb important nutrients,” the National Institutes of Health said.
“The child also had bone malformation due to malnutrition,” the incident report said.
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The responding deputy said the child’s mother was at the hospital, identified as Tinka El, who said she had two other children, a 1-year-old and a 1-week-old, who were home with her husband, Hassan Sahih Bey.
The deputy said when the Bey showed up to the hospital with the other children, doctors determined they too needed to be hospitalized. The 1-year-old was also diagnosed with Rickets. The incident report said the 1-week-old was also severely malnourished.
El and Bey were arrested and have been charged with cruelty to children – deprivation of necessary sustenance and giving a false name, address, or birthdate to law enforcement.
According to the incident report, the couple claimed to be part of the Moorish sovereign citizens group.
“Moorish sovereigns espouse an interpretation of sovereign doctrine that African Americans constitute an elite class within American society with special rights and privileges that convey on them a sovereign immunity placing them beyond federal and state authority,” the Southern Poverty Law Center said about the group. “They use this perceived immunity to justify refusing to pay taxes, buy auto insurance, register their vehicles and to defraud banks and other lending institutions. Many Moorish sovereigns also profit by selling bogus registration, licensing and insurance documents on websites promoting Moorish sovereign beliefs and doctrines.”
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