Officials: 3 killed as human sacrifices in Mexico

[frigidmagi]

cnn

Authorities in the northern Mexican state of Sonora have arrested eight people accused of killing two boys and one woman as human sacrifices for Santa Muerte -- the saint of death -- officials said Friday.

The victims, two of whom were age 10, were killed and their blood was offered at an altar to the saint, according to Jose Larrinaga, spokesman for state prosecutors. The accused were asking the saint, who is generally portrayed as a skeleton dressed in a long robe and carrying a scythe, for protection, he said.

Santa Muerte is a favorite among criminals and the country's drug traffickers. The saint, though not recognized by the Catholic Church, has taken off in popularity in recent years.
Details of the case were laid out in a statement from the Sonora State Investigative Police (PEI), which described the cult as a "Satanic sect."

The first of the three victims was allegedly killed in 2009; the last this month. Their bodies were found in the small mining community of Nacozari de Garcia, some 155 miles (250 kilometers) north of Hermosillo, the state capital.

Many of the accused belong to the same family and one is just 15 years old, the PEI said. Authorities said they began looking into the case when one of the victim's families reported him missing.

"Nothing like this has ever happened before in the state of Sonora. And it's not something we're going to allow," said Guillermo Padres Elias, state governor.

I should note that in general Santa Muerte is not a satanic cult or sect. Santa Muerte is seen as a Catholic Saint (she isn't, the Catholic Church has never recognized her and has tried repeatedly to stomp it out) who orginally was worshiped by those out on society edges, prostitutes, the homeless, thieves, etc. The Cartels have taken over the worship of this figure in a major way and have turned it into something of a death cult in Mexico. There is worship of Santa Muerte in the US (some churches/temples are set up to her in California and other places with a high Hispanic population) but has been peaceful and in fact majority women as opposed to the Mexican groups which have become male dominated (cartels again).

[Josh]

Sinaloa is the big cartel that's got the weird religious shit going on. But there's other smaller outfits that crop up every month or two with their own spin on things. There's even a Knights Templar outfit running around.

[Cynical Cat]

There's a lot of Aztec stuff that survived as fringe Catholic stuff in Mexico (e.g. Virgin of Guadelupe=Aztec corn goddess). It's why skulls turn up so much in Mexican folk religion.