Woman admitted to killing her 3-year-old by putting bag over her head on New Year’s Eve, police say

An Ohio woman is charged with killing her 3-year-old daughter on New Year's Eve. (WBNS, COLUMBUS POLICE DEPT., CNN)
Published: Jan. 2, 2026 at 11:59 PM CST|Updated: 5 hours ago

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WBNS) - A woman is charged in Ohio with murdering her 3-year-old daughter on New Year’s Eve.

According to Columbus police, the first officers who arrived on the scene found 3-year-old Cassidy Sakoulos unresponsive.

Columbus police said they tried to revive the girl until fire and EMS responders arrived to take her to the hospital, but she did not survive.

Police arrested the girl’s mother, 41-year-old Sharon Sakoulos, on murder charges.

An Ohio woman is charged with killing her 3-year-old daughter on New Year's Eve.

According to court documents, Sharon Sakoulos admitted to detectives that she put a plastic bag over her child’s head and that her intention was to kill her.

Neighbors said they watched the little girl and that she loved Scooby-Doo, but said they had a feeling they knew what happened when police arrived on Wednesday.

“We watched the cops get out of their car, beeline to the door, break in and then the ambulance and everything, it happened so fast, so we didn’t know who was in the ambulance,” Tristan Price described. “We saw her outside standing, kind of stoic and calm, smoking a cigarette, like way too calm for if it was a kid. Even my dog, anybody, my sister, I would be shaken. I would not be standing there just not doing nothing.”

Sharon Sakoulos appeared in court Friday where a judge set bond at $2 million.

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