Satan Worshipper Kills, Skins Own Mother On 'Unholy Day' (18+)

A man who strangled his mother and then dismembered her body when he was 18 years old has been sentenced to 25 years in prison.
The murder by Moises Meraz-Espinoza was described as one of the 'most disgusting, hideous and vulgar' cases the judge had ever seen.
A trail of blood and an electrical circular saw, with bone, blood and flesh stuck to the blade, were found in Meraz-Espinoza's California apartment after he confessed to the killing in February 2011.
Prosecutors said that Amelia Espinoza had been skinned, filleted and dismembered as part of a satanic ritual.
The 42-year-old woman's dismembered body was found in a freezer in the Maywood apartment. Her skull,
with the eyes and teeth removed and two upside down crosses carved into it, was discovered in a backpack, but her organs were never found. Meraz-Espinoza used box cutters to skin his mother before freezing her.
Prosecutors say Meraz-Espinoza had been motivated by satanic beliefs, which he was 'heavily entrenched in'.
He has several tattoos with satanic imagery, including upside-down crosses and a 666 behind his right ear. A satanic bible was found near the crime scene and the date of the murder, February 2, 2011, fell on a day in the satanic calendar that calls for ritual human or animal sacrifice.

The date, which is celebrated as Candlemas by Christians, and is also celebrated as Groundhog Day, falls halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, and has pagan roots. According to some satanist worshiping websites, it is celebrated by oral or anal sex and human or animal sacrifice as a way to initiate new members.
'This crime was not in the heat of passion or rash and impulsive,' a prosecutir said. 'It was done for the purpose of devotion. That's pretty much the ultimate sacrifice.'



The crime scene
Meraz-Espinoza, from east Los Angeles, was convicted of first-degree murder by a Norwalk jury in June. He had confessed to the murder two days after killing his mother, when a cousin he confided in convinced him to go to police.
'I don't know what I can say to turn your life around, but you'll have a lot of time to think about it,' Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge told the 21-year-old, who appeared in court with foot-long braids and a partly shaved head.
Defense attorney Jonathan Roberts tried to play down the connection, telling the court: 'The contemporary church of satan doesn't believe in human sacrifice. I never bought that an [18-year-old] kid would adopt the principles of an organization from 50 years ago.'
He added that the factory worker lacked the expertise to skin and dismember a person on his own and referred to Meraz-Espinoza's later statements claiming two other people were also involved.
At the time of the murder, it has been speculated that the murderer was depressed after his girlfriend was knocked down and killed by a car.
However, the prosecutor told the court: 'This was sheerly motivated by evil.'