Bolivia Exorcism Killing Suspects Arrested

LA PAZ, Bolivia — An evangelical pastor and his sister have been arrested by police in Bolivia after they purportedly killed a sibling during a bathtub exorcism, officials said Monday.

The suspects, Carlos Uriona and Adelaida Marca, were arrested after they allegedly drowned their sister during the ritual, police spokesman Juan Carlos Corrales said.

"The suspects confessed that their 18-year-old sister was possessed by the demon and they wanted to purify her and christen her in a bathtub, but it went too far," said Corrales, speaking during a telephone interview.

He said the young woman drowned.

The incident occurred on Sunday in the city of Cochabamba. Police found the victim's body inside a store owned by the pastor.

Marca told investigators that he felt an evil presence when he submerged his sister in the tub, Corrales said.

"An evil spirit entered me, took control of my hand and began to submerge my little sister," Marca purportedly told police. "Satan was inside the tub."

Corrales said the suspects may undergo a psychological evaluation before they go to trial.

He said they had said they intended to perform a "purification" ceremony or exorcism because they felt their sister had been possessed by the devil.

Comments

[brokenleoheart]

02:14 PM on 12/21/2011

this is what happens when people are uneducated and starts believing in a religion

[Profwanda]

08:00 AM on 12/22/2011

Indeed!

[TwoZeroOZ]

10:06 PM on 12/20/2011

This man needs help.

There's also 2.2 billion other people on the planet who need an equal amount of help.

[HunGirl2012]

07:30 PM on 12/20/2011

He doesn't need a psychological evaluation, he needs to close the biblia and stop taking it more seriously than the storybook it is.

[prfktstrngr527]

07:26 PM on 12/20/2011

SMDH! Psychological illnesses such as this runs amuck here in the U.S. too.

[joeyfoto]

07:13 PM on 12/20/2011

They should demand a change of venue so that they can be tried in Iowa... I'm sure they could find a sympathetic jury there.

That's the great thing about being Evangelical — sanity is optional.

[CharlesD]

12:40 PM on 12/21/2011

Bachmann's campaign is from Minnesota, not Iowa!

[Tsar Bomba]

07:11 PM on 12/20/2011

Is the right to believe in a myth more important than housing, fair wages, health care, and equality? IMO "freedom of religion" is the least needed right, in fact not needed at all.

[lightningbolt]

08:12 AM on 12/21/2011

All freedoms are needed.  Freedom of religion does not mean freedom to m u r d e r someone.

[Tsar Bomba]

10:14 AM on 12/21/2011

We need freedom from religion.

[lglglg]

06:53 PM on 12/20/2011

Louisiana Governator Bobby Jindal participated in an exorcism here in the States. Oh please, P-L-E-A-S-E whoever is nominated by the Republican for Prez: choose Jindal for VP!

[Red45]

07:20 PM on 12/20/2011

I'm with you!

[Mindy Czech]

05:55 PM on 12/20/2011

Wow, how insane. I saw Jesus in my pudding, Buddha in my bagel, and now Satan was in that bathtub?

All kidding aside, this is just dreadful. I feel so bad for this young woman whose life was lost because of quacky nutcases. I can't take anyone seriously who claims to exorcise demons or speaks in gibberish and calls it "speaking in tongues".

[CharlesD]

12:45 PM on 12/21/2011

Looks like you won't be voting for a repug then . . . . . . right?

[Statusnaturae]

05:12 PM on 12/20/2011

Evangelicals wrecking havoc across the world.

[contented]

05:01 PM on 12/20/2011

very primitive thinking or perhaps a love triangle?

[justin i]

04:44 PM on 12/20/2011

Ah, religion.

"Marca told investigators that he felt an evil presence when he submerged his sister in the tub"

Yeah, that was you.

[JShankel]

04:38 PM on 12/20/2011

It was all a mixup. Turns out it was Stan who was in the tub. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcjZtsFU5Z4

[LiberalLee]

04:25 PM on 12/20/2011

This isn't religion. It's institutionalized quackery.
How many innocents have to die before a government is allowed to step in and say, " Enough! id enough!"?
Governments tell you who you can marry prompted by religious teachings and yet allow or ignore ritualized torture designed to perpetuate superstition and ignorance.
Un-bloody-believable.

[Parade Keegan]

05:03 PM on 12/20/2011

So many vilify certain religious practices not their own but every religion has harmful practices seen as "not religious" by those who's religion doesn't specifically practice said rite . Religion as is, is hateful, dangerous, mind control IMO and something people who have something to hide, "hide" behind or "use", i.e. "I prayed to god and he forgave me". Wow really, that's what he/she said huh?

[pinkibus]

12:26 AM on 12/21/2011

iberalLee it is very definitely religion and it is so primitive it should be outlawed. All religion should be outlawed. There is a pope appointed exorcist in the Vatican. But the place seems to still be filled with evil. So either the pope made a mistake in choosing the man he chose or the whole thing is flim flam.

[LiberalLee]

11:18 AM on 12/21/2011

Jeebus...Don't let Sacred Student hear you say that. She'll go on for 120 minutes without taking a breath, or pausing for punctuation and never actually make sense while abusing your (mental) eardrums.

[GraphicMatt]

03:25 PM on 12/20/2011

Satan also lives in my shower! Why else would the water get cold when someone flushes the toilet?

[Red45]

07:23 PM on 12/20/2011

OK. You're a sandwich.

[HunGirl2012]

07:30 PM on 12/20/2011

My water gets super hot when the toilet flushes. Satan, or good luck?