Facebook Murder Suspect Experienced Evil Spirits; His Pastor Describes Him as 'Complex Person'
A Florida man who allegedly killed his wife and posted a photo of the corpse on Facebook last week is "a complex, multidimensional person," the suspect's pastor said. The suspect, who is being kept in a jail's psychiatric ward, wrote a book describing his experiences with and passion for evil spirits.
Derek Medina of South Miami "is a complex, multidimensional person just like everybody else," the Rev. Frank Corbishley, of St. Bede Episcopal Chapel in Coral Gables, told The Miami Herald. "That's why everyone is shocked."
Medina turned himself in to police last Thursday after shooting his 26-year-old wife, Jennifer Alfonso, to death at their home. Along with a photo of her body, the suspect posted a note on his Facebook page: "I'm going to prison or death sentence for killing my wife. Love you guys. Miss you guys. Take care. Facebook people you'll see me in the news."
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Medina, who has been charged with first-degree murder, has been kept on suicide watch in the psychiatric ward of the county jail.
"I thought of him as a fairly typical 30-year-old," said Corbishley, who met Medina 19 years ago. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary."
Medina had withdrawn from the church but would visit once in a while, the pastor added. The suspect helped out with Father's Day service and Pentecost Sunday.
According to the victim's father, Jose Alfonso, the couple did not get along well. "A lot of arguing, but physical stuff this is the first that I had heard," he said.
"With Facebook and YouTube, he liked self-promoting himself, but for him to do something like this I'd have never expected, never expected," the father added.
Medina wrote several self-help books and self-published them. He maintained a website, EmotionalWriter.com. The home page of the website features a book titled, Humans Who Are Gifted and Can See the Supernatural Spirit Ghost World We Live in Called Ghost Haunted Adventures.
In his book, Medina describes his experiences of "ghost hunting," and "answers common questions you may have about ghosts."
"For instance, the author was with his wife in New York and his wife was attacked by a ghost," he writes in the book's description. "She was seeing a ghost and was being taunted and messed with. She informed her husband and he told her to go to sleep and he would watch over her. Minutes later he was attacked by a demon ghost and he was sick and throwing up."
Medina says he experienced ghosts in New Orleans, La., Key West, Fla., New York, Miami, Fla., and other cities.
"The author can relate to the world of victims who have been attacked by evil spirits. This book was written for those who have questions and do not understand the paranormal world we live in," the description adds. "The author will take you on a journey that you haven't been on, or maybe you have and can relate to what is written. The author expresses his passion for ghost hunting and when you read this book you will have an understanding of how real this is."
Medina's father claims his son was defending himself. "He was scared of her all his life, all the relationship, because he always reported to me that he would get beaten by her," he was quoted as saying. "She pushed him to the point of insanity."
