13 July 2023
PELICAN RAPIDS, Minn. Court documents have revealed new details in the death of a 3-year-old girl from Pelican Rapids whose mother is facing murder charges in the case.
Suad Ali, 27, made her first court appearance over Zoom on Wednesday, July 12, when new details were brought to light.
Ali spoke just a few words as she learned she would face one count of second-degree murder and one count of third-degree murder in the death of her daughter.
Court records show when officers arrived at Ali’s townhome around 9:30 p.m. Monday, they found Ali on the couch and her daughter lying on the floor.
According to court documents, Ali told officers she punched her daughter in the throat and strangled her to get the child to stop crying. She also told officers she laid on the child when she was face-down to keep her quiet, court documents said.
An officer and EMTs performed CPR on the child before transporting her to St. Mary’s Hospital in Detroit Lakes, where she died.
Court records say Ali also told officers she tried to stab her daughter with a knife earlier that evening, but she didn’t hurt her.
The judge set conditional bail at $70,000, with one of those conditions being she has no contact with anyone under the age of 18.
Otter Tail County Attorney Michelle Eldien said keeping the community safe is of the utmost importance.
“At this point … when we don’t know everything and the investigation is still pending, I think the key is just to make sure that there will be absolutely no contact with any children whatsoever,” Eldien said.
Court records said that during the autopsy, the medical examiner found a bite mark on the child’s left cheek, as well as injuries to her head and brain. The official cause of death has not yet been released.
Ali’s next appearance in court is set for July 24 at 9 a.m.
She faces up to 40 years in prison on the second-degree murder charge and up to 25 years on the third-degree murder charge, according to Minnesota sentencing guidelines.
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