A Florida mother is behind bars, accused of a horrific crime: the alleged murder of her 6-year-old son during a twisted attempt to “exorcise demons” from his body.
Rhonda Paulynice, 41, faces charges including second-degree murder after the discovery of her son, Ra’Myl Pierre, deceased in their home on May 30. The alarming find came after school officials requested a welfare check for the kindergartener, who hadn’t been seen since May 14.
St. Lucie County Sheriff Richard Del Toro Jr. described a chilling scene when deputies arrived.
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Paulynice reportedly acted “oddly,” refusing to remove her sunglasses and appearing “completely indifferent” to the deputy’s presence. She then led the official to Ra’Myl’s bedroom, where the young boy was found wrapped in fabric on his bed, only his face exposed.
An arrest report suggests the fabric may have been used “to possibly conceal evidence of trauma.”
According to Sheriff Del Toro, Paulynice claimed her last interaction with her son was on May 18. She allegedly told investigators that she believed God commanded her to “exorcise demons out of the child’s body.” Disturbingly, after Ra’Myl’s death, Paulynice reportedly “felt the child had been released of those demons and was waiting for him to come back.”
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While a preliminary autopsy “does not refute the mother’s account,” the final results are still pending. Investigators believe Ra’Myl Pierre may have been deceased since May 18.
Paulynice remains held in the St. Lucie County Jail, also facing charges of failing to report a death and altering a body after it was deceased.
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