Nicaraguan Pastor Burns Woman Alive In Bonfire Alleging She Was 'Possessed'

According to Univision Noticias, a pastor in Nicaragua had a "revelation" to "purify" 25-year-old Vilma Trujillo Garcia. Pastor Juan Gregorio Rocha Romero, assured Trujillo Garcia was possessed by the devil, and "God told me to make a fire to get it out." The woman, who supposedly presented mental health problems, was burned at the scene by him and other four religious fanatics in a remote community in the northern part of the country.

One of the men involved in the burning was Franklin Jarquín, who told a local media that the woman was chosen by the devil because she "failed God."

After being thrown to the fire, Trujillo Garcia was found tied and naked with burns in almost 50% of her body and symptoms of dehydration. Unfortunately, a week later, after a painful agony, the woman died in a hospital in Managua.

As reported by Dr. David Saravia, director of the hospital of the municipality of Rosita, the victim’s face, legs and arms were the most affected parts.

When questioned, Pastor Rocha Romero gave another version of the facts, alleging that they did not set the woman on fire, and blamed "the devil." The 23-year-old man has been claiming for the past two years that he is pastor of the congregation of the "Assemblies of God" in El Cortezal.

Both the pastor and Franklin Jarquín were arrested by the National Police, along with one more man and two other women, accused of perpetrating the crime.

Herenia Amaya, a women's rights advocate who advised the victim's family right after the case was known, told Univisión Noticias: "They followed her and held her for two days before burning her." Amaya, who is part of the Women Against Violence Network, identifies the case as a Sexist violence with a major lack of protection on the part of the State.