Pleasantville Woman Charged With Murdering Daughters In Arizona

PHOENIX, AZ — A Pleasantville woman has been charged with murder in the deaths of her two young daughters in Arizona, according to Phoenix police.

Retta Cruse, 35, was charged Tuesday with two counts of first-degree murder.

Her daughters, Royal McIntyre, 4, and Aleyah McIntyre, 9, were found dead on a bed inside their Phoenix home on Sept. 9, police said.

NJ Advance Media reports that the younger girl’s father, Michael Coleman, found their bodies facing each other in the bed. The cause of death is believed to be prescription pills, according to the publication.

Toxicology results are pending.

In a GoFundMe organized to raise funds for a funeral, Coleman said he moved with Cruse and the girls from New Jersey to Arizona for “spiritual reasons.”

“Unfortunately, I came home to a devastating situation where my daughters were deceased and their mother critically injured. At this point, there are still more questions than answers,” he wrote on the fundraiser.

Kevin Maddox, Aleyah’s father, still had custody of the girl and was fighting to have her returned to New Jersey, Maddox’s brother told the Press of Atlantic City.

Cruse suffered stab wounds the night of her daughters' deaths that authorities believed were self-inflicted, according to Phoenix police.

She is currently in the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. Her bail was set at $2 million.

If charged and convicted, Cruse faces the possibility of life in prison without parole.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 23.

With reporting by Caitlin Sievers, Patch staff.