Couple claims their ‘abandoned child’ is actually a scam

A couple from Indiana is accused of ditching their adopted 10-year-old daughter and moving to Canada — but they claim the girl is actually an adult with dwarfism running a psychotic scam, according to reports.

In a story that eerily mirrors the 2009 horror flick “The Orphan,” Kristine Barnett and her ex-husband Michael Barnett claimed to local station WISH-TV that Natalia, the girl they adopted from Ukraine in 2010, is a grownup and a diagnosed psychopath and sociopath.

At the time of the adoption, Kristine Barnett, 43, said she was told that Natalia, who has a form of dwarfism called spondyloepiphyseal, was 8 years old.

But in 2012, she says she realized the adoption was a scam and got the girl’s age legally changed to 22 in an Indiana Probate Court.

Then, in July 2013, the couple set the girl up in an apartment in Tippecanoe County and moved to Canada with their two sons.

Kristine told Natalia to tell people she “looks young” if questioned about her age, according to court documents obtained by Fox 59.

Police found the girl the following year and she told them she “had not seen the Barnetts since they moved to Canada,” according to the docs.

After a five year investigation, the couple were charged last week with two counts of neglect of a dependent.

They said they learned of the charges when contacted by WISH-TV.

Because of the girl’s condition, it’s been difficult for doctors to determine her age. In June 2010, a doctor estimated her age at 8 but an evaluation in June 2012 showed the girl was about 11 years old, court documents said.

In a recent interview with detectives, Michael, 45, allegedly admitted he knew the girl was a minor when he and Kristine skipped town.

They left, knowing the girl didn’t have any connections in the city, and didn’t support her financially other than paying her rent, he said, according to court documents.

The girl moved out of Tippecanoe County in 2016, WLFI reported.

The couple were featured in a “60 Minutes” report in 2012 that documented the successes of their son Jacob, reportedly a physics prodigy.

They surrendered to authorities on Thursday and were released on $5,500 bond.

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