Adoptive mother suspected of murder

Authorities say the woman was in a scam involving 11 children and may have killed 1.

WEST PALM BEACH - Authorities believe a woman charged in a lucrative adoption scam involving 11 children from New York may have killed one of them and disposed of the body, a detective said Thursday.

Judith Leekin, 62, of Port St. Lucie adopted the 11 disabled children using four aliases in New York City to make money with subsidies for their care, officials said. Nine of the children - now ages 15 to 27 - are in Florida state custody. A 10th, now 19, remains on his own in the state.

But authorities are considering a murder charge against Leekin as they try to find the 11th child, a boy named Shane Graham who would be 19. He was last seen with Leekin in 1999 or 2000. The other adopted children have said Leekin told them he died.

The boy had Down's syndrome, autism and sickle cell anemia, among other serious afflictions, Port St. Lucie police Detective Stuart Klearman said.

"He couldn't feed himself, bathe himself, do anything for himself," Klearman said. "He couldn't walk or speak. ... On his own, he could not survive."

"There's been no trace of this kid anywhere," Klearman said. "But the money was still flowing to her. She falsified documents to keep it flowing."

Leekin adopted the children between 1988 and 1996 and they all moved to Florida from New York in 1998. Within two years, Graham was gone, yet Leekin continued to receive adoption subsidies for him until her arrest last year, Klearman said.

New York City records indicate Leekin received more than $1.2-million in payments over the years for caring for the kids.

Authorities say Leekin kept the kids like prisoners in her Port St. Lucie home. They say the children were often handcuffed, beaten, starved and locked in a room, deprived medical care and not allowed to attend school.

[Last modified January 10, 2008, 23:03:58]