A pregnant woman said she was attacked with a large rock by her neighbor who accused her of doing witchcraft. (Source: ActionNewsJax.com)
Esther Horton said she had just put her 4-year-old son in the car seat in their driveway when their neighbor Annie Olomua came running toward her.
"It was out of nowhere,” Horton said. “We didn't hear her coming. We didn't see her coming. Suddenly there was a, ‘You beep,’ and a brick flying at me."
Horton said Olomua was aiming for her head but Horton ducked and was struck only in the arm.
Horton is six months pregnant and said she is thankful she wasn’t more seriously harmed.
"If it was head or stomach, it could have been attempted murder,” Horton said.
Horton's husband, Michael Powell, stepped in and restrained Olomua until police arrived.
"It was just a scary thing all around really to just be attacked out of the blue like that,” Powell said.
According to the arrest report, Olomua said her neighbors were using “witchcraft and magic” to hurt her and her family over the last several months.
The report also said Olomua was talking to herself while the investigator questioned her.
Horton and Powell said Olomua had talked about witchcraft before but they said they never expected her to turn violent.
"She has talked about witchcraft and accused us and different people up and down the block of sorcery and things like that but I just kind of blew that off as crazy talk and you know it was harmless but I guess it wasn't as harmless as I thought,” Powell said.
Action News learned Olomua was arrested in 2008 for child abuse in California.
Horton and Powell said they hope Olouma is given the help she needs.
"I don't want to see her locked up or anything," Powell said. "I just want her to get help. Go to the hospital.”
"Just putting her in jail time is not going to solve anything,” Horton said.
Olomua was arrested for aggravated battery and was being held at the St. Johns County jail.
Law enforcement said it would be up to the State Attorney’s Office to determine whether Olomua would need to receive any kind of mental health evaluation or treatment.
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