A Witness to Spontaneous Human Combustion & Other Stories of SHC

The body of Alexander Morrison covered in slates from the roof which fell on top of his remains after the fire.

The body of Ginette Kazmierczak

Jeannie Saffin 
The only known case of Spontaneous Human Combustion which was witnessed was that of Jeannie Saffin of London, England on September 15, 1982. Jeannie Saffin was 61 years of age but had the mental capabilities of a six year old and lived with her 82-year-old father, Jack Saffin. While in the kitchen, Jack noticed a bright flash out of the corner of his eye. Turning to Jeannie to ask if she had seen it as well as, Jack Saffin noticed his daughter was on fire, sitting perfectly still with her hands in her lap. Don Carroll, Jack’s son-in-law entered the house just in time to see Jeannie in flames. Jack and Don rushed her to the sink in an attempt to stop the fire from consuming her but it was too late. Jeannie went into a coma and died eight days later. The flesh on her face, hands and abdomen had entirely burnt away to the subcutaneous fat. Don Carrol claims he saw flames coming from Jeannie’s mouth and said she was “roaring like a dragon” although no burns were found in Jeannie’s mouth. While perhaps Mr. Carroll was exaggerating just a bit, many instances of supposed spontaneous combustion witnessed in the 1400s-1600s claim similar phenomenon. One example is the case of Polonus Vortius, a knight in Milan, France who died sometime between 1468-1503 during the reign of Queen Bona Sforza. The parents of Polonus Vortius claimed he drank “two ladles of strong wine” then vomited fire and was consumed by the flames. At the time of Jeannie Saffin’s death the only source of ignition was the pilot light in the gas stove. On the day of the incident, she was wearing nylon which investigators blame for her death. Jack Saffin had earlier emptied the ashes from his pipe before reloading it with fresh tobacco. Investigators theorized an ember fell on Jeannie, remained there for quite some time as Jack reloaded his pipe, only later to set Jeannie’s clothes on fire when Don Carroll entered the house and a gust of wind stirred the ember. Technically this would be possible but it is a bit of a stretch to explain away the incident. Jeannie Saffin’s official cause of death was recorded by coroner, Dr. John Burton, as “broncho-pneumonia due to burns”, reportedly due only to the fact that when Jeannie’s family attempted to explain the spontaneous combustion they had witnessed, he replied “No such thing.”.
More recently, “Spontaneous Human Combustion” had been reported as an official cause of death.
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Woman Found Pushing Her Deceased Child in Swing for “Unusually Long Period of Time”

Romechia Simms with her son, Ji’Aire Lee

At 7AM on Friday, May 22, 2015 deputies of the Charles County Sheriff’s department arrived at Wills Memorial Park in La Plata, Maryland in response to a call reporting a woman who had been swinging a child for an “unusually long period of time”. Although officers had originally believed the child was in need of first-aid, as they approached, “It was instantaneously clear the child was dead.”. The child was identified as three year old Ji’Aire Lee and while there were no clear signs of foul play, investigators are not ruling out the possibility. It is believed the mother may have been pushing her deceased child on the swing all of Thursday night, having arrived that evening.

The swing which was cut down along with Ji’Aire’s body. A teddy bear and potted flowers sit beneath the absent swing; It is unclear whether they were placed there by Romechia Simms or mourners.

 Reportedly, the boy’s body had to be removed along with the swing which was cut down by firefighters. The body was then sent to the office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy and toxicology test, the results of which have yet to be publicly released.The boy’s mother, 24-year-old Romechia Simms, had been diagnosed with a mental illness three months prior and had been in a custody battle with the Ji’Aire’s father, Donnell Lee, since March of 2015. Mr. Lee was concerned about Romechia’s emotional state and felt it would be better if their son lived with him and only visited his mother. At a recent hearing, the judge advised Ji’Aire would be better off living with his mother. The Wednesday prior to the discovery of Ji’Aire’s body, Romechia had called Donnell and asked him to pick up their son because she was having issues with her mother, Vontasha Simms. By the time Donnell got off work and attempted to come pick up Ji’Aire, Romechia had stopped answering her phone. Romechia Simms and her child were temporarily homeless after moving out of Donnell Lee’s residence and had been living in a motel in Waldorf, Maryland, approximately one mile from Wills Memorial Park.

Wills Memorial Park in La Plata, Maryland.

She had reportedly been suffering from severe depression due to her predicament, in addition to the mental illness which she had been diagnosed with three months prior to her son’s death. After the boy was discovered, Romechia was admitted to a local hospital for a mental evaluation; She was released the following Monday. Romechia’s mother, 47-year-old Vontasha Simms stated that ordinarally, “[Romechia] would never harm my grandson in any way. You know, I just believe she had some type of mental illness, some type of mental break that came upon her where she wasn’t able to get herself out of that situation.”. Vontasha hopes her family’s tragedy will prevent similar situations in the future adding, “I don’t want people to look down upon her; I want people to use the situation as an opportunity to grow, learn from it. Like I said, help your neighbor. If you suffer from mental issues and you need help, don’t be afraid to reach out to somebody.”.

3 year old Ji’Aire Lee

More on this story as it becomes available.
Special Thanks to @Haxan_Aok on Twitter for calling this story to our attention
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Where Are They Now? Amarjeet Sada, The World’s Youngest Serial Killer

Amarjeet Sada, World’s Youngest Serial Killer. Murdered three infants in India at the age of 8.

Amarjeet Sada (sometimes referred to as ‘Amardeep’ Sada) is the world’s youngest known serial killer, having committed three murders at the age of 8. Amarjeet was born in 1998 to an impoverished family in Begusaray, Bihar, India; His father is a laborer in the village of Musahri. In 2006 Amarjeet murdered his 6 month old cousin, the daughter of a maternal uncle. Shortly after, he murdered his own 8 month old sister. While Amarjeet’s family and some villagers were aware of the child’s involvement in these two murders, they were considered “family matters” and went unreported. In 2007 Amarjeet killed again, this time a neighbor’s 6 month old daughter named Kushboo. Kushboo’s mother, Chunchun Devi, left her daughter at the village primary school to sleep while she tended to her chores. When she returned, her daughter was gone. Villagers who knew of Amarjeet’s past murders confronted him regarding Kushboo’s disappearance. Amarjeet, seemingly proud of his actions, happily recounted the gory tale of how he killed the infant. He then led villagers to the shallow grave he had dug for Kushboo. Amarjeet told police, “Khapda de mar mar ke sura deliyay” meaning “I killed by beating her with a brick”. He told police he had laid her down in the grass before beginning to smash her face with a brick, then covered the body in grass and leaves before returning to his home. Reportedly, all three murders were conducted in this manner. It is believed he also strangled his two previous victims, which may have been the cause of death prior to beating with a brick. Unfortunately, because his first two murders went unreported and there was no official investigation into them, details remain unclear. Police say, “He [Amarjeet] said he took the children to the fields and hit them with a stone and killed them. He has been charged with the murder [of Kushboo Devi].” Amarjeet was arrested on May 30, 2007 and “spoke little but smiled a lot” when asked about the murders. While being further questioned he, “Just smiled a lot and asked for biscuits.”

 Superintendent Amit Lodha, a resident of Begusarai (90 miles/145 kilometers east of Bihari, the capital of Patna) said Amarjeet Sada appeared to be a psychiatric case. He was evaluated by professionals and found to be suffering from a conduct disorder. Panta-based psychoanalyst Shamshad Hussain found that this conduct disorder causes Amardeep to behave in a sadistic manner. Due to a severe chemical imbalance in Sada’s brain, he receives a sense of gratification from inflicting injuries on others. A psychologist working on his case explained, “such aggression may be hereditary and may be caused because of great chemical upheavals in the brain.”. According to a former psychology professor at Patna University, Sada did not have a sense of right or wrong when he committed the murders due to his conduct disorder. It is believed with medication, levels of chemicals in his brain can be balanced. Ultimately, the boy was charged with murder and tried as a juvenile. Sada’s story lost steam for most of the world after that point so there is not much information available on what became of him. Although Amarjeet’s current status is “unknown”, we can assume from his graphic and proud confession, he was eventually charged with the murder. Since the boy was tried as a juvenile, in accordance to Indian law, he could not have been imprisoned any longer than three years. Due to his mental state at the time the crimes took place, it is possible he served his sentence in a psychiatric institute in lieu of a juvenile detention center. After his sentence had been served, it is also possible that his parents chose to keep him in a mental health facility; However, considering they did not seek mental health for him after either of the first two murders, it is unlikely he received more therapy than was required. Amarjeet Sada would be approximately 17 years old now (no exact date of birth available, only birth year) and more likely than not, a free young man. There are rumors he may have changed his name to ‘Samarjit’, which is common when young children commit a horrendous crime and are later rehabilitated. Hopefully Amarjeet Sada has been, and will continue to be able to manage his conduct disorder through therapy and medication and live a new life under a new name, scrutiny-free.
UPDATE: After writing this article I was contacted by Amarjeet Sada who claims he is currently living in a children’s home in India where he will remain until he is 18 years of age. No other details at this time.
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