The Investigation Discovery collection exposes extra alleged abuse inflicted on Natalia Grace
Printed January 8, 2025 4:56PM (EST)
The Curious Case Of Natalia Grace (courtesy of Investigation Discovery/Max)
For years, Natalia Grace’s story has perplexed true crime followers, investigators and the general public.
In three seasons, “The Curious Case of Natalia Grace” has examined Natalia’s troubling and traumatic life story, bouncing from foster houses to many alternative adoptive mother and father after coming to the U.S. from Ukraine as a toddler. Natalia was recognized with a type of dwarfism, spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, which has led to long-standing points with caretakers exploiting her.
The mistreatment started along with her first adoptive household, Michael and Kristine Barnett, who alleged that Natalia was older than she mentioned she was. The Barnetts re-aged Natalia by altering her authorized delivery yr from 2003 to 1989. The Barnetts minimize off Natalia in 2013 and one other adoptive household, Cynthia and Antwon Mans stepped in. A decade after being welcomed into the Mans household, Natalia alleged that the Manses have been financially exploiting her and bodily abusing her.
Within the last chapter of Natalia’s story, a former adoptive household, the DePauls, makes an attempt to uplift and assist Natalia to realize monetary and private independence from the Manses. The twisty documentary collection unveils extra stunning particulars about Natalia’s former adoptive household in 4 episodes launched on Jan. 7 and eight on Max.
Listed here are a few of the greatest bombshells from “The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Last Chapter:”
For a decade, Natalia lived with the uber-religious Mans household, who fostered numerous different kids. In these 10 years, Natalia relayed to her former almost-adoptive mother, Nicole DePaul, that the Manses have been controlling her life. She additionally revealed that she lived with power ache that the Manses ignored. She even shared with Nicole that when she informed the Mans, “I wished to go,” they referred to as her “psychological.”
Unable to dwell beneath Antwon and Cynthia’s management, Natalia requested the DePauls to assist her escape from their agency grasp. Natalia and Nicole communicated by way of Natalia’s abroad boyfriend, Neil, to arrange the flowery escape.
The DePaul household, initially from upstate New York, traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to secretly decide up Natalia at Antwon and Cynthia’s church. Then Natalia and the DePauls drove 16 hours to New York. Lastly, Natalia could be free.
Regardless of the escape, Antwon and Cynthia’s maintain on Natalia was tight and she or he instantly contacted her mother to elucidate why she left them.
“As soon as I obtained in [Nicole’s] automobile, I needed to textual content my mother to let her know I wasn’t kidnapped or useless,” she says. “It was an emotional time. I needed to unfold my wings.”
All through “The Curious Case of Natalia Grace,” it’s unveiled that there are quite a few witnesses, together with neighbors and mates, who alleged that the Manses abused their adoptive and foster kids. Some even detailed claims that they noticed the Manses hit Natalia with a belt, slap her within the face and even lock her in a room.
Nevertheless, when requested, Natalia would deny any claims of abuse on digital camera. However Nicole and her daughter, Mackenzie, mentioned Natalia painted a special story in non-public.
“Now and again, she’ll drop little tidbits concerning the abuse that went on within the Manses’,” Nicole mentioned. “Natalia has admitted to me firsthand that she has been whooped by each Cynthia and Antwon. She clarified that “a whooping is sort of a beating.”
Mackenzie mentioned, “[Natalia] did point out whooping — scared-of-Antwon-type whooping. Hitting anyone with a incapacity is already tousled, not to mention a toddler, not to mention someone with such extreme dwarfism.”
One other witness, Robert Madewell claimed that Antwon and Cynthia abused his son and Natalia. Madewell additionally mentioned he referred to as Baby Protecting Providers when his son informed him Cynthia refused to let him use the toilet.
The producers of the collection mentioned the Manses didn’t reply to the allegations.
Within the four-part collection, it’s complicated to decipher how Natalia felt concerning the Manses. One second she relayed traumatic experiences she had with the couple and in one other second she strongly defended them.
This habits leads Nicole to consider that the Manses have been blackmailing Natalia for her assist. The documentary collection shared that each Cynthia and Antwon have confiscated Natalia’s telephone many occasions, gathering details about her romantic and sexual relationships.
Nicole theorized that they might have private movies or messages of Natalia that they have been threatening to leak if she spoke badly about them. Natalia by no means confirmed this principle however she does categorical that she fears backlash from her adoptive mother and father.
“I really feel like with these movies, they’re going to start out a f***ing battle . . . My mother and father are gonna come out and say s**t . . . and it hurts as a result of I by no means thought in my whole life that they might in all probability try this to me, however I’m actually, actually sure that they might,” she mentioned.
“I’m frightened about my relationship with Neil. I wish to simply dwell my life. I wish to be with the person who I really like, and I really feel like they’re actually going to place some s**t on the market.”
Desire a every day wrap-up of all of the information and commentary Salon has to supply? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.
Finally, Nicole took issues into her personal palms due to Natalia’s flip-flopping feedback and opinions on the Manses. Nicole arrange hidden cameras in her home to guard herself and her household and to corroborate Natalia’s contradictory statements. However Nicole additionally shared that Natalia is absolutely conscious of the cameras as a result of she helped set them up.
The cameras catch quite a few truthful moments from Natalia. In a dialog along with her boyfriend, Neil, he informed her, “I believe perhaps you need to speak to somebody about some of these items, ? I imply, a few of it was fairly brutal.”
Natalia responded, “Hmm, yeah.”
Then Neil mentioned, “Particularly from Antwon. Do you perceive what I am saying?”
Alongside alleged bodily abuse, the Manses have been accused of utilizing Natalia and different foster kids to fund their lives.
Finally, Natalia demanded that the Manses pay her a few of the cash she earned from public appearances. Nevertheless, they made her agree that she has no proper to the Manses’ residence regardless that it was bought with Natalia’s cash. Natalia additionally agreed to let Cynthia stay as Natalia’s month-to-month social safety cost receiver.
Natalia additionally acquired a $104,000 tax invoice due to Cynthia and Antwon. At first, the couple mentioned they might assist Natalia pay the taxes however they backed out.
“We informed her we might go in on it as a result of it was our cash, however we by no means mentioned we was paying that complete factor. That satan’s a liar,” Cynthia informed Nicole and her husband, Vincent.
The Manses refused to assist pay the taxes and to ship financial institution statements, emphasizing to Nicole and Natalia that they might proceed to profit from her social safety funds.
Natalia mentioned Cynthia informed her, “Possibly that is God’s means of claiming you may transfer to the U.Ok.,” in order that she could possibly be along with her boyfriend, Neil.
On the finish of the collection, it’s clear Natalia has deep-rooted trauma from her troublesome childhood and maturity. She admits that she does want remedy however is reluctant to ask for assist.
Alternatively, Nicole supported Natalia in receiving the assistance she wanted. Nicole met with a
rehabilitation psychologist, who additional defined Natalia’s reactive attachment dysfunction.
“Reactive attachment dysfunction is what occurs when kids don’t bond to their caregivers,” the therapist mentioned. “People with unaddressed trauma like Natalia has, these are behaviors which can be coming from years of rejection and trauma.”
When Natalia’s relationship with the Manses started to bitter on account of monetary causes, she hit a breaking level. This in the end modified her thoughts on an necessary surgical procedure that would alter her power ache.
“I all the time thought doing the surgical procedure, I is likely to be paralyzed, however then I realized if you do not get the surgical procedure in any respect, you might nonetheless go paralyzed. I do need my again straight. I do wish to take away the ache,” she mentioned.
“The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Last Chapter” is on the market to stream on Max
Nardos Haile is a workers author at Salon masking tradition. She’s beforehand coated all issues leisure, music, style and superstar tradition at The Related Press. She resides in Brooklyn, NY.
MORE FROM Nardos Haile
By Nardos Haile
Associated Articles