Woman convicted of child abuse after injecting healthy son with insulin

Actions by Jerusalem mother brought one-year-old’s blood sugar levels dangerously low, in supposed ploy to falsely claim welfare benefits

By ToI Staff 22 January 2019, 2:20 am

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An ultra-Orthodox woman is brought to a Jerusalem court on July 29, 2018, under charges of abusing her children by injecting them with insulin (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The Jerusalem District Court on Monday convicted a resident of the city of abusing her infant son after she repeatedly injected him with insulin in June of last year, even though he does not have diabetes.

The woman, a 30-year-old ultra-Orthodox mother of 10, admitted as part of a plea deal that she injected her one-year-old son on four occasions while he was hospitalized at Shaare Zedek Medical Center, causing his blood sugar levels to drop dangerously.

The mother supposedly did this to create the appearance that her child had diabetes in order to falsely claim welfare benefits. Though the police investigation involved suspicions that the mother had taken similar action with several of her other children, the eventual indictment only dealt with the infant’s case.

Her sentence will be given at a later date.

Police said at the time of the indictment that the woman and her husband, who was also arrested but later released, received some NIS 800,000 ($220,000) in total and that the benefit claim would be investigated.