Geneva Gomez (Photo: Via Facebook)
She believed her daughter was possessed by the devil, police say. So she forced a crucifix down her throat until blood gushed out, police say.
Police arrested Juanita Gomez, 49, of Oklahoma City on charges of killing her daughter, Geneva, whose body was found by authorities stretched out on the floor with a large crucifix resting on her chest.
"Blood was visible, and she had suffered severe trauma around her head and face," said court documents filed on Monday, according to Tribune Media. After placing the body in a cross position, the court document show, Juanita cleaned her daughter's dead body.
Her mother told investigators that she believed her daughter, 33, who was living with her, had demons inside. According to investigators, she admitted to punching Geneva multiple times "and forced a crucifix and religious medallion down her throat until blood came out of her daughter's mouth. Juanita saw her daughter die and then placed her body in the shape of a cross."
Geneva Gomez’s ex-boyfriend, Francisco Merlos, told the Oklahoman that he was the one who alerted authorities to her death.
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He told the paper that he and Geneva split two days before her death, and he went by the house on Saturday hoping to get back together with her.
When he knocked, Juanita opened the door and pulled him inside, Merlos told the paper.
"[Geneva] was lying on her back with the cross on her chest,” he said. “You couldn't even recognize her face.”
Merlos tried to leave the home, but Gomez tried to lock him in the house.
"I just push her to the side, open the door and she tries to get me in a chokehold," he told the Oklahoman.
Outside, Merlos called 911.
Juanita is being held without bail. At her arraignment, according to the newspaper, she seemed unfazed, making religious remarks to the judge and complaining that her jail cell had no toilet paper.
Mother and daughter worked together as massage therapists and, according to the paper, were described by many as being extremely close.
“They do their nails [together], they do their hair, everything," Merlos said.
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