A 6-year-old Louisiana girl found dead in a bucket on her biological mother’s front lawn in Harahan Wednesday morning died from strangulation and blunt force trauma.
Hannah Landon, the girlfriend of Bella Fontenelle’s father, was charged with first degree murder and obstruction of justice when she was released from a hospital Thursday morning, WDSU reported.
Bella’s father reported her and Landon, 43, missing Wednesday morning at about 7:30 when he woke up and found they were gone, as CrimeOnline previously reported. Another child was still at the residence.
Investigators found the kindergartner’s body in a 10-gallon plastic bucket on her biological mother’s front lawn, about a block away. Video from neighbors’ security cameras showed a woman matching Landon’s description pulling a wagon, loaded with a white bucket, down the street.
Investigators located Landon at a local hospital, although they did not say why she was there.
Jefferson Parish Coroner Gerry Cvitanovich said Bella’s cause of death was “manual strangulation along with blunt force injuries to the head,” WWL said.
“I want to add that Bella’s body was intact and contrary to public speculation, there was no dismemberment of any kind,” Cvitanovich said.” This is not something we’re happy to do. It’s something that’s hard to see, and it’s even more hard to unsee.”
Investigators have said they believe Landon killed Bella some time Tuesday night. According to WVUE, Landon arrived at the Harahan Police Department early Wednesday morning, likely a couple of hours after the murder, Police Chief Edward Lepre said.
“She seemed a little bit out of it,” said Lepre. “She was asking for a transport so they called for an ambulance to come pick her up and once the ambulance came to pick her up, they transported her to a local hospital to be evaluated.”
And that’s where she was when detectives began searching for her later Wednesday morning.
According to WDSU, Landon is listed as the suspect in an incident that let to injuries on Bella’s mother’s face and hand. While Landon was given a summons for simple battery, the disposition of the case is unclear. Afterward, however, Landon filed for a temporary restraining order against the mother, saying she feared injury, loss, or damage.
WVUE reported there were at least two incidents of physical altercations between the two women in 2021, one at a swim meet and the other at a soccer match.
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[Featured image: Hannah Landon, left/Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office and Bella Fontenelle/Facebook]
