In 2016, Francisco Merlos Broke up with his girlfriend, Geneva Gomez, 33, two days before her mother forced a crucifix down her throat. Merlos headed to his ex-girlfriend’s family home in Oklahoma to try and win her back, but the scene that welcomed him still haunts him to this day.
Gomez’s mother, Juanita, opened the door. His ex-girlfriend’s lifeless body was on the floor with her arms to the side as if she were crucified. There was blood everywhere, her beaten face was unrecognizable, and some of her hair was missing. A large crucifix was on her chest.
Moments later, as he attempted to leave, Juanita put Merlos in a chokehold. She started muttering things about “money” and “the devil.” He escaped and immediately called the police.
This Thursday, after a 20-minute trial, Gomez’s mother was convicted of first-degree murder and will be subject to a life in prison without parole. Suzanne Lavenue, the assistant district attorney, gave a statement following the trial:
“We think it was a just verdict.” “It was an incredibly heinous murder. The victim suffered quite a bit before her life was ended. The crime scene was horrific. It was obvious that there´d been an extensive struggle all over the house.”
After convincing herself that her daughter was possessed, Juanita proceeded to beat her daughter repeatedly, forcing both a crucifix and a medallion down her throat until she coughed up blood. She did so to “rid Satan of her daughter’s body.”
Medical examiners ruled that Gomez passed away due to “blunt force trauma to the face and head. And had puncture wounds to her throat and her hair had been pulled out.”
Her mother’s hand were swollen and had bruises on her arms caused in the struggle. Juanita first attempted to plead insanity and feigned memory problems to appear incompetent, but a psychologist said she was sane enough to face trial.
The mother displayed absolutely no emotion when the judge read her verdict of life in prison for first-degree murder.
This article was inspired by Washington Post // She forced a crucifix down her ‘possessed’ daughter’s throat. Now, she’s convicted of murder.