Pastor Convicted of Homicide After Burning Woman for 5 Hours To Cast Out 'Demon' Inside Her
A jury in Nicaragua found an evangelical pastor and four members of his congregation guilty of homicide following the death a 25-year-old woman who was allegedly stripped naked and left to burn for five hours to cast out a "demon" inside her body as part of an exorcism ritual.
Pastor Juan Gregorio Rocha Romero, who leads a church in a remote village in the South American country, was found guilty of killing Vilma Trujillo Garcia, who suffered burns over 80 percent of her body before dying in February, the Associated Press reported.
Two different versions of the woman's death were presented in court. In the decision handed down last week, Judge Alfredo Silva Chamorro noted that the woman was tied to a tree trunk and left to burn for five hours, saying this was one of the aggravating circumstances in the case.
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However, Rocha Romero denied that he was responsible for the woman's death, claiming that the woman fell into the fire without anyone pushing her. The demon then left her body, the young pastor claimed, according to La Prensa.
Rocha Romero was said to belong to the Assemblies of God, but the latter issued a statement denying that he was one of their pastors.
During the trial, the victim's relatives told the court how Rocha Romero had his followers bind Trujillo Garcia, beat her, and refused her food, water and visitors, Agence France Presse reported.
"He told us not to feel any love for her, because that was just the devil, that she had to be burned until only her head was left," the victim's cousin Roberto Trujillo told the court in the capital, Managua.
"They wouldn't let me near her. Pastor Juan Rocha told us not to pay any attention to her because she was possessed by a demon," said the victim's sister, Marlene.
According to witnesses, Trujillo Garcia was killed in a week-long exorcism ritual from Feb. 15 to 21. They said she was stripped naked and thrown on a pile of wood that was set alight.
As reported by La Prensa, the victim was found lying naked on a riverbank near a ravine, her body tied up and badly burned. She was brought to a hospital in Managua on Feb. 28 but died a few days later because of severe burns and infection.
Forensics expert Ricardo Larios told the court she had been subjected to temperatures of 400 degrees Celsius (752 Fahrenheit).
Prosecutors are seeking prison terms of up to 36 years in prison for the accused, even exceeding Nicaragua's maximum prison sentence of 30 years. They face sentencing on May 9.
