A schoolgirl’s dismembered body was discovered in a burning bathtub after she was allegedly drugged and raped on the day after her 10th birthday, it’s reported.Victoria Martens was injected with methamphetamine, sexually assaulted, strangled and stabbed before her remains were partially wrapped in a blanket and set on fire, police said.Experienced detectives described the killing as the “most gruesome act of evil” they have ever seen.The girl’s 35-year-old mother Michelle Martens, her boyfriend Fabian Gonzales, 31, and his cousin Jessica Kelley, also 31, were all arrested on Wednesday night.
Michelle Martens
Officers were called to a disturbance at Arroyo Villas Apartment Complex in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where they saw a cloud of smoke wafting from the bathroom, the Albuquerque Journal reports.
Inside they were met with the horrifying scene as the youngster lay reportedly burning in the bathtub, while parts of her body were found in a plastic bag in a laundry hamper and the bedroom floor was stained with blood.
Martens and Gonzales, who had been dating for around a month after meeting online, face multiple charges including child abuse resulting in great bodily harm.
Kelley had reportedly been allowed to stay at Martens home after she was released from prison four days earlier.
A police report alleges that Martens admits Gonzales and Kelley gave the girl methamphetamine “to calm her down so they could have sex with her.”
Gonzales sexually assaulted the little girl as Kelley covered the girl’s mouth and Martens watched, it’s alleged.
She claimed Gonzales then strangled Victoria and Kelley stabbed her before the two of them dismembered the girl’s body and Martens told police she was not involved in the death.
The incident is said to have happened on the day Victoria was due to celebrate her 10th birthday, CBS news reports.
Albuquerque Police Department Chief Gordon Eden said in statement: “This homicide is the most gruesome act of evil I have ever seen in my career.
“A complete disregard of human life and betrayal by a mother. So many are in need of the support and prayers of our community.”