The cases that stick with me the most are the ones that involve children, and particularly children who are betrayed by caregivers in positions of trust.
These sorry excuses for adults forgo their responsibility to work on themselves, and instead unleash their insecurities, shortcomings and inner demons on innocent children. The children they hurt have their whole lives ahead of them. They’re only discovering who they are, what they like and what the world has to offer—and what it doesn’t. And it’s all tragically cut short because the “adult” in question doesn’t take initiative to question their behaviors and seek help. Instead, they choose to express their hatred of themselves and their dissatisfaction with life on the children that stand before them.
And so it goes with the terrible death of 6-year-old Bella Elena Fontenelle.
The Murder of Bella Fontenelle
Bella was beautiful, funny and kind. She loved princesses and playing dress-up. She was a kindergartener at St. Matthew the Apostle School in River Ridge, Louisiana. The mere sight of her was enough to put a smile on someone’s face.
Bella was killed by her father’s longtime girlfriend, 43-year-old Bunnak “Hannah” Landon, on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, in the New Orleans, Louisiana, suburb of Harahan. She was strangled, beaten and suffered blunt-force trauma. If that isn’t horrible enough, Bunnak subsequently forced Bella’s remains into a white 10-galloon bucket used for pool chlorine. Her body was manipulated into the fetal position. She then loaded the bucket into a wagon, walked a block to Bella’s biological mother’s house, and left the bucket in her front lawn.
A home in the neighborhood caught Bunnak on surveillance around 9:35 pm. She walks steadily with calm eeriness, as if transporting a load of groceries. She’s dressed in a red-orange blouse, black pants and white knee-high boots.
Michael Fontenelle, Bella’s father and Bunnak’s boyfriend, worked until about 10:30 pm that night. He is a certified public accountant (CPA) and it was the middle of tax season, so he was busy, overworked and tired. He fell right asleep on the living room couch and didn’t notice Bella and Bunnak’s absence until the next morning. When he awoke on Wednesday, April 26, Michael realized that Bunnak and Bella weren’t home. He arrived at the Hanahan Police Department in Harahan, Louisiana, around 7:30 am to report them missing. A search of the area ensued.
As part of the search, police visited the home of Bella’s mother, Jennifer Zeleden, around 8:30 am. That’s when they discovered Bella’s deceased body wedged inside the bucket. Police located Bunnak around 2 pm at a local hospital. Bunnak was taken to the hospital the night before after walking to the Harahan Police Department. She was in a slightly disoriented state and requested transportation. Bunnak was booked into the Jefferson Parish Correction Center on charges of first-degree murder and obstruction of justice. The first-degree murder charges are not because the murder was confirmed to have been planned, but because it was committed on a child under 12 by an adult in a position of trust.
What series of events could have happened to lead Bunnak to betray Bella? Let’s dive into this case. (Keep in mind, this case is ongoing and many details haven’t been made available yet.)
A Family Backstory
Michael Fontenelle and Jennifer Zeledon met in college. Both of them received degrees in accounting and went on to become CPAs. The couple never married, but they remained together for several years.
Michael and Jennifer had two beautiful daughters: Bella, 6, was the youngest, and she was preceded by an older sister, Aria, now age 7. Shortly after the birth of Bella, Michael and Jennifer separated. The separation was difficult, but they maintained joint custody and kept a working relationship for the sake of their kids. Michael and Jennifer lived close by to make parenting easier. Their homes in Harahan, Louisiana, an area characterized as safe and neighborly, are only a block apart. As the girls grew older, they’d be able to walk to their parents’ homes as often as they wished.
Bunnak Lim Enters the Picture
Two years after Michael and Jennifer ended their relationship, Michael began dating Bunnak Lim, who goes by the aliases “Hannah Landon” and “Bunnak Landon.” For the purposes of this article, we’ll refer to her as Bunnak.
At the time of this crime, Michael and Bunnak were together for more than four years. Bunnak has a son of her own, though he lives in Florida. Not much is known about the relationship between Bunnak and her son, or her past life. However, there are claims that she once had a family that she since abandoned.
Bunnak moved into the home that Michael shared with his two daughters on Donelon Drive. Together, they shared the single-story home, and Bunnak assumed the role of a step mother.
Bunnak displayed several unusual characteristics in regards to Bella and Aria. She was known to be very jealous, particularly of Jennifer. Thus, she made it a point to convey that her, Michael, Bella and Aria were a tightknit unit. Part of this strategy involved dressing identically to the children. This wasn’t only done for holidays, but for all sorts of occasions. Friends of the family thought it was unusual, given that Bunnak wasn’t the girls’ biological mother and Jennifer was very much involved in their lives.
Bunnak doesn’t have a social media trail. She didn’t work, but was a homemaker of sorts. It’s believed that she originally emigrated to the U.S. from Thailand, though it hasn’t been confirmed. As stated, few details are known about the relationship between Bunnak and her estranged son, or about Bunnak in general.
Michael’s mother, Barbara Fontenelle, wasn’t fond of Bunnak. Rather, his side of the family found Bunnak to be strange and unsettling. She wasn’t close with anyone in Michael’s family. No one felt like they really “knew” her, despite her being with Michael for several years.
More on Bunnak Lim
So far, the details surrounding Bunnak’s life are hazy. However, there are a few facts that have come to the surface.
Bunnak’s time in Harahan, Louisiana, can be traced back to between 2018 and 2019, when she began a relationship with Michael. Prior to this, she lived in various apartments in the Mobile, Alabama, area, about 150 miles northeast of Harahan. According to sources, Bunnak moved to the Mobile area in April 2006. On May 7, 2013, Bunnak obtained a marriage license with Donald Dewayne Landon, her former spouse.
The Wrath of Bunnak’s Jealousy
Bunnak and Jennifer, the girls’ mother, didn’t get along. It’s believed that as a result of that persisting conflict, Bunnak took her frustrations out on Bella. Coincidently, Bella more closely resembled her mother.
Physical Altercations at a Child’s Swim Meet and Soccer Game
As police investigated, they unearthed a petition for a temporary restraining order, which involved physical conflicts between Bunnak and Jennifer back in 2021.
An incident occurred on June 8, 2021, when Jennifer, Bunnak, Michael, Bella, Aria and Jennifer’s sister, Evlyn Zeleden, attended a child’s swim meet at the Riverside Country Club in Harahan. Jennifer approached her daughters to hug them and bid them a job well done. Bunnak intervened and started a fuss about it being “Michael’s custody day,” even though they shared joint custody. Michael agreed to “let” Jennifer hug her daughter for “one minute,” and Bunnak took out her cell phone to record Jennifer.
Evlyn told Bunnak to stop recording and Bunnak slapped Evlyn’s hand. Evlyn told Bunnak to never do that again, and Bunnak proceeded to pull Evlyn’s hair. Michael was not present at the time, though it’s unknown why. He caught the tail-end of the altercation after a bystander intervened. Police were called and both women were interviewed. Bunnak was described in court documents as being “extremely uncooperative” and persistently blamed Jennifer and Evlyn, who had visible scratch marks on her face and hands. Bunnak refused to provide officers with any information until she was threatened with charges.
Bunnak received a municipal summons for simple battery. However, she subsequently filed a temporary restraining order against Jennifer, citing several claims against her. She also cited a second claim about another altercation on March 17, 2021. On this date, the women were attending a children’s soccer game. Bunnak claimed that Jennifer approached her, grabbed her by the arm and threatened to harm her.
The temporary restraining order was dismissed by Judge Faulkner of the 24th Judicial District Court on August 5, 2021. There were no grounds to verify Bunnak’s claims. No other incidents were subsequently known to police.
Updates
Shortly after Bella’s murder, her aunt, Bianca Z. Cano—another of Jennifer’s sisters—started a GoFundMe on behalf of their family, with Jennifer Zeledon listed as the beneficiary. The GoFundMe, which has since closed, raised more than $41,000.
On the GoFundMe page, Bianca writes:
Where do I start… my beautiful Bella… the world is so unjust. You were given to us for 6 amazing years. You were beyond perfection. Your beautiful little voice, your funny personality, the way you danced, the way you were so delicate and fragile, your smile, your laugh, the way expressed yourself. I can go on and on about how amazing this little soul was. My sister’s two daughters were what gave her life meaning and strength to go on each and everyday. This senseless and heinous act has forever destroyed my family. No words can describe the pain that is running through our bodies. It’s truly inhumane.
This case remains ongoing and Bunnak is set to appear in court in July. As frustrating as the details are, many of them are hazy.
A Possible Theory
There seems to have been an influx in stepparents committing violent crimes against their stepchildren. This “influx” may be the result of social media and heightened coverage, which makes it seem like these tragedies are occurring more often.
However, stepchildren may be particularly vulnerable to violence at the hands of a stepparent, according to Humanium.org. There are several reasons for this, which include:
- Stepparents not feeling as connected to their partner’s children as they do their own
- Stepparents bringing unresolved personal issues into their new family dynamic
- Stepparents having low self-esteem or weak bonds, which are then put onto their stepchildren
The Cinderella Effect
The Cinderella effect is a nod to the 1950 animated musical fantasy by Disney, Cinderella, which depicts the main character, Cinderella, being gravely mistreated by her stepmother, Lady Tremaine. Lady Tremaine has two daughters of her own, Anastasia and Drizella, who she favors, and encourages their mistreatment of Cinderella.
Before it became a Disney classic, Cinderella started as a folktale with thousands of variants worldwide. The oldest Cinderella story dates back to somewhere between 7 BC and AD 23, and tells the story of Rhodopis, a Greek slave woman who married the Pharaoh of Egypt. The story has changed over time to depict the modern-day version of Cinderella recognized in the U.S. today.
‘Survival of the Fittest’
The Cinderella effect is a theory in evolutionary psychology that’s used to explain why stepparents are more likely to abuse stepchildren than biological children. The theory derives from an inherent bias in the wiring of the brain, which suggests that parents are naturally wired to protect and prolong the survival of their own children over children that aren’t biological. It’s a theory that’s linked to survival of the fittest.
Not all stepparents perceive their stepchildren this way. However, for those that don’t have a natural disposition that’s loving, caring and nurturing, the theory states they’re more likely to behave vindictively towards their stepchildren. These vindictive behaviors translate into emotional abuse and, in some cases, the abuse turns physical.
Repressed Emotions
Another contributing factor of the Cinderella Effect involves the stepparent’s emotions. Not all adults are able to cope with emotions in a healthy way. In this context, a stepparent may single out one of the stepchildren, in most instances, to use as a scapegoat to express their repressed emotions.
Resources
- 6-year-old Bella Fontenelle was beaten, strangled to death, Jefferson Parish Coroner says – NOLA News
- Bella Fontenelle’s family decries ‘heinous’ murder after body found in bucket – New York Post
- Family Tension: Dark past of Bella Fontenelle’s ‘killer’ revealed after she ‘murdered 6-year-old and dumped body in mom’s frontyard’ – The U.S. Sun
- Court documents reveal history of fights between Fontenelle’s mother, accused murderer – Fox 8 Live
- HEINOUS & VILE: Bella Fontenelle | Woman Murders Little Girl and Puts Her in A Bucket on Mom’s Porch – Annie Elise x 10 to Life
- Child’s BODY FOUND in Bucket on Mother’s Front Lawn in Harahan | Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office – iCkEdMel
- Tackling the issues of violence against children by their step-parents – Humanium.org
- Definition of The Cinderella Effect – Psychvarsity
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