An Arizona father has been charged with first-degree murder after authorities said he killed his 6-year-old son during an exorcism last week.
According to KOLD-TV, police and FBI agents responded to a home on the Pascua Yaqui Indian Reservation on Sept. 26 after receiving a 911 call about a burned child. Officers discovered the boy unresponsive and naked with burns on his head and arms, the news outlet reported.
Doctors at a nearby hospital pronounced the child dead, authorities said.
According to the Arizona Republic, the boy's father, Pablo Martinez, 31, told police that the boy had been possessed. To "cast the demon out," he ran scalding water down his son's throat for several minutes, Martinez reportedly told investigators.
Martinez's wife, Romelia, called a pastor and police after she discovered Martinez running the water over her adopted son, the Republic reported. She also claimed that the child had exhibited demonic behavior, police said.
Authorities arrested Martinez, who remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshal's Service, KOLD reported.
