Mother charged with murder


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Teddy bears are among the toys set up outside the apartment in the Newbold/Point Breeze area where Savanna, 12, and Savann Mao. 8, were allegedly killed. The stuffed-animal memorial has been growing since the day after their deaths and even included photos of the siblings Sept. 1 — the same day their 27-year-old mother, Chanthy Mao, was charged with two counts of murder and one count of possession of an instrument of crime.


Mao, also known as Sotheary Mao, is believed to have stabbed her daughter, Savanna, and son, Savann, multiple times in the chest inside their first-floor apartment on the 1700 block of South 18th Street Aug. 31, according to police.


Police received a radio call for a person with a weapon and a disturbance at the location at 5 p.m., Chief Inspector Scott Small said at the crime scene. Police entered the dwelling 20 minutes later to find the siblings, who were pronounced dead at the scene. 


“What we’re finding is it may have happened sometime during the day, but it wasn’t discovered until the grandmother came home around 5 o’clock,” Sgt. Robert Kuhlmeier said Tuesday noting a kitchen knife was recovered, but that it had not yet been linked to the homicides.


The incident is believed to have happened in the apartment’s middle bedroom that Mao shared with the two children. Mao’s parents stayed in the back bedroom while Mao’s husband only temporarily resided at the house as he was often away on business, Kuhlmeier said. The upper two floors were rented to other tenants.


“The boy was on the bed,” Kuhlmeier said. “We assume he was sleeping or waking up from a nap. The girl was also in the bedroom. She was found on the floor next to the bed.”


The children were still inside the home as of 8 p.m. Aug. 31, but police transported the mother to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania to be checked out, Small said.


“Based on her behavior, we believe she may be under the influence of something,” Small said noting she may have been unstable due to a narcotics or pill overdose.


The woman supposedly told police that she was responsible for stabbing and killing her own children, Small said.


“Her behavior was bizarre. Her behavior seemed to be a little unusual. … Not in a violent way,” Small said of how responding police described the woman.


Police were not able to confirm her mental state during the crime as of press time.


“We don’t know yet,” Kuhlmeier said. “That won’t be known until we subpoena records from the hospital.” 


Residents sat on their steps and gathered outside the yellow caution tape as police gathered evidence last week. William Bradshaw did not know the family, but saw them in passing previously.


“I think that’s horrible,” the resident who lives across the street from the fatal incident said.” This is the first murder I ever heard of on this block. This has always been a nice neighborhood. Kids being murdered – that’s deep.


“I [saw] the husband come home. He was crying.”


Bruce Jennings, who lives a few doors up, wasn’t familiar with his neighbors either aside from seeing them walking to the store and Laundromat. He learned of the tragedy as he came home from work.


“You don’t want to know what I think. I’m a father,” the dad of a 6- and 9-year-old said.


Contact Managing Editor Amanda L. Snyder at asnyder@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117.

Also in this week’s Police Report:
Invading the wrong home
iPhone thief
Hit-and-run biker
Pharmacist sent to jail
Witnesses scare robber
Focus group forming

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