Mother Drowned, Stabbed Her 2 Toddlers In Lakewood: Prosecutor

LAKEWOOD, NJ — A Lakewood woman has been charged with two counts of murder, accused of drowning her two toddlers and stabbing one of them on Tuesday, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said Wednesday.

Naomi Elkins, 27, was arrested at the home on Shenandoah Drive, Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.

A relative of the family told The Lakewood Scoop that the two children were both girls, and that Elkins had been struggling with mental health issues for some time.

"The mother of the girls that committed this unthinkable act had a history of mental illness, specifically psychosis, though she was doing much better over the last year or so," the family member said.

"Apparently she tragically experienced some kind of psychotic episode without any warning signs," the family member said. "There simply are no words to describe the shock and pain."

Lakewood police were called to the house at about 4:50 p.m. Tuesday for a report of two children in cardiac arrest and arrived to find Hatzolah Medical Services EMTs trying to resuscitate two children, a 1-year-old and a 3-year-old, the prosecutor's office said.

Both children were pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

Investigators determined both children had been drowned, and the 1-year-old also had been stabbed, and that Elkins was responsible for the deaths of both children, the prosecutor's office said.

Authorities have not said whether Elkins has any other children or who called emergency services.

Elkins has been charged with two counts of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and unlawful possession of a weapon, Billhimer said.

She is being held at the Ocean County Jail in Toms River pending a detention hearing.

The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Lakewood Township Police Department, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, and Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office combined in the investigation.