Police: Uncle Killed Nephew, 1, To 'Release Evil Spirits'
Pastor Dale Morgan
Police: Uncle Killed Nephew, 1, To 'Release Evil Spirits'*
POSTED: 10:31 am EDT September 26, 2007
UPDATED: 5:20 pm EDT September 26, 2007
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- A West Palm Beach man told police that he used
a butcher knife to kill his 1-year-old nephew because he believed the
boy was possessed, investigators said.
Eric Sawyer, 38, was arrested around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday after police
found his 1-year-old nephew Brandon Cole wrapped in bloody sheets in the
laundry room of a home on the 5800 block of Orchard Way in West Palm Beach.
Sheriff's spokesman Paul Miller said the killing was "premeditated," and
that Sawyer told police that he had been thinking about killing the boy
for days, WPBF News 25 reported.
Sgt. Pete Palenzuela told WPBF that police believed they were responding
to the home because of a dog attack but realized it was something more
sinister when they found numerous stab wounds and cuts on the baby's
abdomen. Palenzuela said police attempted to revive the child at the
home but were unsuccessful.
Miller said there were three occupants in the house when police arrived,
including Sawyer, his niece Ashley and the boy's grandmother, Judy, who
police said owns the home. Investigators said a 911 call made by the
niece referenced a child not breathing and who had possibly been mauled
by a dog.
According to a police report, Sawyer was sitting on a couch in the
living room of the home when police arrived and found the boy. Upon
questioning him about what happened to the child, Sawyer told police, "I
did it," according to the report.
When the responding officer asked Sawyer where the dog was, Sawyer
replied, "It's not a dog, it's a human," the report said.
Miller said Sawyer was then placed in a police vehicle for officer
safety. Upon further questioning on what was going on, Sawyer told
police, "I did it. I thought the baby was possessed, so I had to cut it
out of him," the report said.
According to the report, Sawyer told police that things in the home had
been bad lately and that no one had been getting along. Police said
Sawyer told investigators that he had been thinking about killing the
boy for the last four days because the child was not in a good
environment in the home and that he would not have much a future growing
up this way. Sawyer told investigators that, because of this
environment, he stabbed the boy with a butcher knife that he found in
the kitchen in order to "release the evil spirits," according to the report.
Detectives placed Sawyer under arrest and took him to the Palm Beach
County Jail. He was denied bond during his first appearance in court
Wednesday morning.
The child's mother was believed to be at work when the incident took
place, Miller said.
Miller told WPBF that deputies have responded to the home previously for
domestic disturbances. According to a police report, Sawyer was arrested
in April of 2006 while having a dispute with his mother, Judy. Police
said that Judy told investigators that her son had mental problems and
had not been taking his medications, according to the report.