The malnourished 4-year-old Harlem boy who died weighing just 19 pounds lived in a hellish, feces-smeared home where his callous parents locked away food, prosecutors revealed Thursday as his dad faced a judge.
Laron Modlin, 25, was ordered held without bail after the court learned disturbing new details about the squalid conditions under which little Jahmeik Modlin slowly starved to death.
Food-filled cabinets were sealed shut with child safety locks in the apartment where Modlin and his wife Nytavia Ragsdale, 26, lived with Jahmeik and three other young children, said Assistant District Attorney Heather Buchanan, describing conditions found by medical examiners.
“There was a refrigerator with food in it,” she said. “However, the refrigerator was turned to the wall so it was not accessible by any of the children unless it was turned around.”
A back bedroom in the apartment was covered in human feces, and smear marks on the walls were consistent with being made by children, Buchanan told a stunned courtroom.
Jahmeik — who slipped into unconsciousness late Sunday before dying, burned and malnourished, hours later in Harlem Hospital — had feces matted throughout his hair, Buchanan said.
New information from the medical examiner revealed the deceased boy’s hair also was thinning, a distinct sign of malnutrition, the prosecutor said.
The child also had hair on his face, a sign of prolonged period of dehydration and malnutrition, she said.
Jahmeik was last seen medically in 2022. He weighed 23 pounds at that time, Buchanan said.
“The child not only had muscle wasting and no fat on his body,” she said. “The child’s growth itself — the bones — had been stunted, further showing the prolonged period of deprivation this child endured.”
“In the two years since he last had any medical attention, he’s actually lost weight.”
The revelations detailed during the alleged deadbeat dad’s arraignment on manslaughter and child endangerment charges add to an already-grim portrait of young Jahmeik’s tragic life inside the apartment along Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd. near West 144th Street.
Administration of Children’s Services workers twice visited the family’s home in the last four years, sources told The Post.
One visit was for reported deplorable living conditions that were cleaned up when workers arrived, a source said.
The other stemmed from one of Jahmiek’s siblings being born with marijuana in their system, according to the source.
The other three children — who have been turned over to ACS — remain hospitalized on IV fluids and have gained no weight since they were seen by a doctor, Buchanan said.
“They are so malnourished that they are currently on a liquid diet, as they cannot be fed solid foods at this time,” she said.
Modlin, who hasn’t worked in two years, had told authorities he “must not have noticed the condition of his son because he is often playing video games or on his phone,” according to a criminal complaint.
After Jahmiek was in the hospital, Modlin left his apartment and essentially went into hiding in a family member’s home while evading questions from cops, Buchanan said.
Defense attorney Kayla Smith told the judge that Modlin had significant mental health problems and argued he should be released.
But Judge Beverly Tathan remanded him to jail where he’ll await trial.
Ragsdale, Modlin’s wife, had her bail set at $100,000 cash by another judge during her own arraignment on identical charges Wednesday.
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