Claudia Hernandez, a 25-year-old California mom, has been charged with killing her 3-year-old daughter by performing an exorcism to allegedly drive out the child's evil spirits.
But instead of helping the toddler, who was said to have been "possessed," the mother ended up suffocating her child while her relative, identified as Pastor Rene Huezo, who is also the toddler's grandfather, participated in the exorcism.
Reports from The Mercury News stated that the mother sought the help of her local Pentecostal church and family because her daughter, Arely Naomi Proctor, kept crying and screaming periodically. The exorcism ritual happened for 12 hours straight as the child incurred injuries to her face, neck, eyes, and chest. Arely was also deprived of food during her ordeal.
According to the medical examiner, Arely's actual cause of death was asphyxia due to suffocation. Hernandez had squeezed her daughter's neck during the exorcism to hold her down.
Pentecostal Church Had Another Incident With a Baby
Daily Mail reported that Huezo and the mother's brother, who was also at the exorcism, have not yet been charged in court. The pastor defended the incident as the will of God. However, he didn't explain why he felt his granddaughter had to go through an exorcism.
The grandfather maintained that the toddler didn't show signs of distress. But a preacher of the church said that emergency services should have been called to help the child. The family did call 911 two hours after Arely died.
Huezo's church is actually in the basement of a house in San Jose. Since Hernandez's charges, the pastor has not been responsive to attempts of an interview by the media. He is still in pain over Arely's death and the mother's fate.
This is not the first controversy involving the Pentecostal church. In April, the community also made headlines due to the kidnapping of Brandon Cuellar, a 3-month-old baby who was hidden in the church basement. The suspect in the case is a church member.
The baby was rescued and found safe by the police while the kidnappers were arrested. Investigations into the kidnapping are still ongoing.
"You Weren't There"
Hernandez told investigators in a video recording that the incident "is what it is." She said she hasn't wished to change what happened to her child because she can't bring her back to life anymore.
Police arrested Hernandez in January 2022, or four months after Arely died, for child abuse. However, the police recently ruled that Arely's case was a homicide.
Hernandez also told investigators that people turned their back on her when her daughter died. She said that people also judged her despite not knowing the whole truth.
"If you weren't there, you don't know what happened," the mother said, per NBC Bay Area. She has been in custody without any bail.
