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A Nicaraguan woman has died after allegedly being thrown onto a bonfire in an exorcism ritual, sparking national outrage in the Central American country.
Vilma Trujillo Garcia, 25, was rushed to hospital on Feb. 23 with first degree burns over 80 percent of her body. She died on Tuesday after five days in intensive care.
Her husband said the woman was stripped naked and pushed onto a bonfire in a local church in El Cortezal, a remote area in the country's northeast.
The mother of two was taken to the church after she started to hallucinate and talk to herself. People were convinced that she was possessed by "bad spirits" after committing adultery, the BBC reported.
The woman had been held captive there for almost a week before the exorcism was carried out.
"She's got burns on her face, legs and arms and her kidneys and liver have been damaged," Vilma's husband was quoted by the Guardian as saying.
"I don't think my wife was possessed at all. What they did to her was witchcraft," he added.
Police said the case was being treated as murder. A 23-year-old pastor and four of his followers have been arrested, but they denied the charges, claiming that the victim was led by "spirits" to the fire.
The death of Vilma has been extensively covered by local press and police conferences were broadcast live on Facebook.
"Nicaraguans were alarmed and bewildered by what happened," news site El19 Digital wrote.
【Cover Photo is file image】
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
