Ukrainian teenager pleads no contest to involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with his grandmother's death

FORT LAUDERDALE – A 14-year-old Ukrainian girl was charged Death of her grandmother has pleaded no contest to a manslaughter charge in adult court.

The teenager was charged with killing her 79-year-old grandmother, Yevheniia Koval, in her Lauderdale Lakes home on May 23. She came to this country from Ukraine about a year ago.

After the court granted her request, she was sentenced to a maximum sentence of up to three years in a maximum risk juvenile corrections program, the highest level of juvenile corrections in the state. After she served her sentence, the court ordered that she be under community supervision until the age of 21. However, because she is not a U.S. citizen, she is expected to be deported to her native Ukraine following her prison sentence.

A no contest plea means the person does not contest the charges against them. According to the Broward District Attorney's Office, Adult Judge Thomas Coleman remains in charge of the case.

Koval's son was the one who found her body in the home at 4191 NW 41 Street. He told police at the time that he had left his mother at home with his teenage daughter to visit a friend. When he returned home, he said he found Koval “lying on the floor unresponsive.” several bruises on her body.

At Wednesday's change of plea hearing, Koval's son told the judge it was a “very, very difficult situation” since he lost his mother to his daughter. He said he fully supported the outcome and thanked the lawyers and the judge for the way the case was handled.