Natalia Grace, an orphan who was adopted from Ukraine by Michael and Kristine Barnett was accused of being an adult posing as a child at the time of her adoption.
Her adoptive parents accused her of trying to kill them and also pretending to be a child when she was an adult with a genetic disorder. A recent DNA test was conducted to finally give us the answers – she was a child when she was adopted.
Natalia Grace Was 9 Years Old When She Was Adopted
TruDiagnostic conducted the blood test that was done to confirm Natalia’s age, it suggests she is approximately 22 years old now.
This would mean she was 9 years old when the Barnetts adopted her.
Natalia Didn’t Even Know Her True Age
Natalia, who didn’t even know her true age, believed she was around 20 at the time of the blood test in Aug. 2023.
Michael and Kristine Barnett told everyone that she had a rare genetic disorder, spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, that made her appear as a child when she was an adult.
The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks
A new docuseries is airing, that gives her a chance to share her side of the story.
In the premiere episode of The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks, she says “This one little piece of paper throws every single lie that the Barnetts has said right into the trash with a match,” continuing to say “This is so big. Because literally, this has been 13 years of just two people lying their butts off. They ruined a kid’s life. They painted [me] as some big monster.”
Natalia Claims That The Barnetts Knew What They Were Doing
The DNA test proves that all along she was not lying about being a child – the Barnetts were the ones who were lying.
“It just proves that I was not lying about my age,” she continued. “They ignored everything that was pointing to the truth just so they could create this stupid lie. They knew it and they still did what they did.”
Barnett Family Claims Natalia Tried to Harm Them and Their Family
According to the Barnetts, Natalia tried to poison Kristine’s coffee and kill her by dragging her toward an electric fence.
Not only did she allegedly try to harm Kristine, but also tried to harm the family’s biological children.
Natalia Is a Sociopath, You Are All in Danger
In an interview with Good Morning America, Michael Barnett said that doctors told them that Natalia was a “sociopath”.
He claims they said “This person is a con artist. You are all in danger.”
Barnett Family Legally Changed Natalia’s Age to Make Her an Adult
Two years after they adopted Natalia from Ukraine, the Barnetts petitioned to have her age changed legally to 22, which would mean she was not born in 2003 but instead in 1989.
The following year, the family moved with their three biological children to Canada and left Natalia alone in an apartment in Lafayette. The family was later charged with neglect of a dependent.
Will the Barnetts Be Prosecuted?
An Indiana judge did dismiss the charges against neglect, based on the legal age change she was an adult at the time.
However, the prosecutors can bring the charges back based on the findings that she was still a child.
Natalia Says Kristine Barnett Abused Her on Multiple Occasions
On the contrary to Barnett’s claims, Natalia details many instances of abuse from her former mother. She says that Kristine pepper sprayed her twice.
She also claims that her mother attempted to make her overdose, saying that she forced her to take three times the dosage of her medication which caused her to become “dizzy and pass out.”
Kristine’s Proof That Natalia Was Not a Child
In addition to the other times Natalia accuses Kristine of abusing her, she remembers one time that she was forced to insert a tampon when she was only 7.
This caused her to bleed, which Kristine later used as evidence to claim she was older than 7 and had already had a period.
Where Is Natalia Now?
According to the Lafayette Journal and Courier Natalia now lives with Cynthia and Antwon Mans and their children and has been since 2013, when she met them while abandoned in the Lafayette Apartment.
According to the Mans’ family Instagram account, “Natalia celebrated her 20th birthday on Sept. 4, 2023.” (via People)
