“She frequently becomes extremely angry;” Mother, who struck her 6-year-old daughter “an unknown amount of times” with a hammer, leaving the girl with multiple skull fractures, was indicted
Kentucky – In a deeply disturbing case out of Kentucky, a 40-year-old mother, identified as Z. Abdi, has been indicted on multiple felony charges after attacking her 6-year-old daughter with a hammer, leaving the child with life-threatening head injuries. The grand jury indictment accuses the mother of criminal attempted murder, first-degree assault, and first-degree criminal abuse of a victim under 12 following the June incident that nearly claimed the girl’s life.
The Attorney’s Office confirmed that the indictment was returned on Tuesday. Abdi, who had already pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and domestic violence charges during an earlier arraignment, remains in custody at the detention center on a $500,000 bond. On June 19, just before 12:50 p.m., officers from the police department were dispatched to a home for what was described as a “trouble run.” The report coming in was shocking: a child had repeatedly been struck in the head with a hammer by her own mother.
When first responders entered the home, they found the 6-year-old girl “down” and suffering from blunt force injuries to her head. Medical assessments revealed multiple skull fractures, consistent with repeated strikes from a heavy object. Emergency medical personnel rushed the victim to a children’s hospital, where she was admitted in critical condition. Due to the severity of her injuries, the department’s homicide unit immediately took over the investigation. Abdi was taken into custody at the scene.
According to the post-arrest complaint, Abdi told investigators that “she frequently becomes extremely angry and has difficulty controlling herself” and that on this day she became “overly angry” and struck her daughter in the head with a hammer “an unknown amount of times.” The horror did not end there. Abdi’s son, who witnessed the assault, told police that while he tried to restrain his mother, she told him, “let me finish her” and attempted to go back to the child.
The victim’s name has not been released, but authorities confirmed she was released from the hospital this week and is now staying with relatives. Neighbors expressed disbelief and outrage when news of the attack broke. Neighbors called the allegations “terrible” and said they could not imagine what pressure would lead a mother to such violence. They also said the case gave them “cold chills” and described it as “disgusting,” questioning how anyone could reach such a level of anger—“especially with an innocent child.”
Abdi is set to appear in the county circuit court next week for her arraignment on the indictment. If convicted, she faces the possibility of decades in prison for what prosecutors and police have described as one of the most brutal domestic assaults they have encountered in recent years. The case has left the community grappling with the reality that the violence took place not at the hands of a stranger, but in the child’s own home—at the hands of the person meant to protect her most.
