Courtney Soyka, and Marcus Maddela

By Jillian Pikora From Daily Voice

A Croydon couple has been sentenced for starving their premature newborn twins to the point of life-threatening malnourishment, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office announced on Thursday, Dec. 4.

Courtney Soyka, 33, pleaded guilty to two counts of child endangerment and was sentenced to one year less a day to two years less a day in county jail. Marcus Maddela, 45, previously pleaded guilty in late October to child endangerment charges and was sentenced to eight to 23 months in county jail, authorities said.

Premature Twins Found Severely Malnourished

The investigation began in December 2024 when the infants — born prematurely at 32 weeks on Oct. 7 — were returned to the hospital after missing four follow-up appointments each. The couple had failed to bring the babies to critical weight checks after they were released from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, officials said.

When admitted on Dec. 11, one twin weighed 5.78 pounds, having only gained 1.62 pounds since birth. The other weighed 5.04 pounds, just 1.3 pounds more than their birth weight, prosecutors said.

Rapid Weight Gain At Hospital Confirms Neglect

The twins were transferred to St. Christopher’s Hospital in Philadelphia, where they rapidly improved with routine formula feedings, indicating they had been severely underfed at home. Doctors determined the children showed “very poor weight gain” with no other signs of illness, consistent with insufficient caloric intake.

Judge, Prosecutors Denounce Case As 'Extremely Disturbing'

During sentencing, President Judge Raymond F. McHugh heard Assistant District Attorney Bridget Murphy describe the case as “extremely disturbing.”

The abuse was investigated by Bristol Township Police Detective John Jennings and prosecuted by Murphy and former Deputy District Attorney Brittney M. Kern.