A 6-year-old Texas girl was killed by her mother, who allegedly told police she stabbed the child under "God's order," authorities said. The woman was naked and running around the crime scene, police said, when she was arrested for murder.
Mourners gathered Sunday to remember 6-year-old Hosanna Sancho, a Texas girl who dreamed of being a cheerleader, after police say her mother repeatedly stabbed the child and told officers, "God told me to sacrifice her."
The little girl "was a very happy child,” her aunt Irma Martinez told local reporters at a vigil attended by more than 200 grieving relatives and friends. “I’m really going to miss her, and I’m very glad that I got to meet her," her aunt said.
Nephiterea Sancho, 36, was arrested Wednesday by San Antonio police officers responding to calls of an attack at an apartment complex and a naked woman running around the property, authorities said.
Nephiterea Sancho told responding officers she had attacked her daughter with a knife because "God told me to sacrifice her," police said. The woman was nude and behaving strangely, officers said.
She has been charged with capital murder and is being held at the Bexar County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail. Inside Edition Digital reached out for comment to Sancho's attorney on Monday.
Her case has been turned over to a grand jury, according to online court records. She has not entered a plea.
Relatives said the mother had a history of mental health issues and had relinquished custody of Hosanna to other family members when the child was 4.
The mother was visiting her daughter when the attack occurred, relatives said.
Hosanna played the violin and had mastered the art of turning a perfect cartwheel, something she practiced over and over to help her become a cheerleader, her family said.
“She was happy all the time. I never saw her sad, I never saw her nothing, she was always happy, running around everywhere,” said Irma Gonzales, another aunt, at Sunday's service.
The child's mother had been charged 14 years ago with assaulting a child after choking her 3-year-old niece, her relatives said. According to court records, she was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was committed for a time to a state mental health facility after being deemed a danger to others, the records stated.
Her last court appearance on that matter was in March 2023. The court records were not clear as to when she was released from the facility.
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