A Miami mother is facing serious allegations after authorities said she poured hot candle wax onto her young daughters and later set a fire in the kitchen while the children remained inside.
Meliza Campos Sanchez, 26, was taken into custody Monday after investigators reviewed an Instagram video that allegedly showed her dripping hot wax from candles onto the girls at their home in the 4200 block of 95 SW Avenue in Miami, according to complaints reviewed by Our News Outlet.
Court records state that Campos-Sanchez, speaking in Spanish, told her daughters, ages six and three, “not be scared” as the incident unfolded on camera.
The video, which authorities said was shared Sunday on Campos-Sanchez’s personal Instagram account, first showed the mother using the candles to let melted wax fall onto her own leg, according to the documents.
Investigators alleged she then turned the candles toward her two daughters and poured the hot wax onto their hands, the complaint said.
A separate video posted to the same Instagram account allegedly showed Campos-Sanchez wearing a mask, dressed in underwear, “dancing seductively” and singing in Spanish, according to the court filings.
In that footage, she allegedly placed two pieces of clothing on the kitchen floor before pouring a liquid over them, investigators claimed.
Authorities accused Campos-Sanchez of then using a red wand-style lighter to spark a fire in the kitchen while her daughters were still in the room.
Meliza Campos–Sanchez, 26, was arrested on Monday after being accused of dropping hot wax on her little girls at their Miami home
Campos–Sanchez regularly posted pictures and videos of her daughters on her public Instagram profile
A complaint filed Monday into the Miami-Dade County court system viewed by Our News Outlet said the girls’ ages were verified by their father.
Campos–Sanchez’s daughter did not suffer any visible injuries from the incident, according to the complaint.
The six-year-old told investigators that her mom had poured what she called ‘hot water or agua’ from lit candles on her, her sister and herself, according to legal filings.
The little girl also allegedly told an Arson Squad detective that she and her sister saw their mom ‘burn a shirt,’ which started a fire with the girls inside the residence.
Campos–Sanchez was not interviewed by investigators because she was ‘sedated and under a Baker Act,’ the complaint added.
The Baker Act is a Florida law that allows for the involuntary placement of an individual for emergency mental health treatment.
A complaint for the arson charge viewed by Our News Outlet said Campos–Sanchez’s husband, Yusniel Cue, told investigators that he and his wife had been having marital issues and that he had stayed at his parents’ home for the past week.
Cue said Campos–Sanchez had previously attempted to commit suicide, according to the complaint.
He added that he had not been allowed to take his children from the home and that he had been calling authorities for the past week.
Campos–Sanchez was charged with one count of first–degree arson, two counts of child neglect and one count of child abuse. She will next appear in court on Friday
The husband said he learned about the Instagram videos after getting a call from one of Campos–Sanchez’s friends.
He took custody of his two daughters while Campos-Sanchez was taken to the hospital, per the complaint.
Campos–Sanchez has been charged with one count of first-degree arson, two counts of child neglect and one count of child abuse, per Miami Dade County jail records.
She pleaded not guilty, waiving her arraignment, according to a subsequent legal filing on Monday viewed by Our News Outlet. She also demanded a trial by jury.
Campos–Sanchez will appear in court on Friday morning for a pretrial detention hearing, Miami-Dade County records said.
The accused mother’s social media presence frequently featured her two daughters.
On July 16, she posted several pictures of her children posing at an undisclosed airport. The little girls were wearing matching plain white shirts with ‘Mom’s Bestie’ written in pink, as well as sparkly jackets.
‘They are my why,’ Campos–Sanchez wrote in Spanish to caption the photos.
‘Everything that I do, every sacrifice [I make], every goal and every dream [I have], has their names,’ she posted.
Campos–Sanchez added that she wanted her daughters to know that ‘their mom never stopped trying.’
The Daily Mail has reached out to public defender Carlos J Martinez, who was listed as Campos–Sanchez’s attorney in the most recent court filings, for comment.
If you or someone you know needs help, please call or text the confidential 24/7 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the US on 988. There is also an online chat available at 988lifeline.org.
