FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ A blood trail along a living room floor grew heavier in the kitchen and led to the garage of a Royal Palm Beach home. There, detectives say, was the body of Francisca Monteiro-Balla, 55, who had been slashed in her head, arms, chest and stomach.
Placed on top of a cardboard box: Monteiro-Balla's eyes, which had been removed from their sockets.
Detectives say Monteiro-Balla's daughter Camille Balla, 32, killed her using glass shards.
Deputies were called to the 100 block of Country Club Way around 1:40 a.m. Friday. A colleague of Camille Balla had called authorities after finding her covered in blood in front of the house.
Balla appeared frantic, and had cuts to her hands, deputies said.
"I killed my mother and I need help," Balla told deputies, according to the arrest report.
Asked where her mother was, Balla told them she was in the garage and handed over the house keys, which were also covered in blood.
Palm Beach County Fire Rescue treated Balla as deputies went inside the home, stained with blood splatter, to find Monteiro-Balla.
Balla said she had smoked cannabis that she suspected was laced with Flakka or PCP, the arrest report said. As she was being treated by paramedics, she mumbled, ran around, screamed "I'm a murderer, I'm a murderer!" and fell to the ground, according to police.
While being treated for large cuts to her fingers and the palms of both hands at Palms West Hospital in Loxahatchee, Balla alternated between being calm and lucid to screaming and yelling, according to the arrest report. She was later taken to St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach for additional treatment.
During their investigation inside the house, detectives found handwritten notes with religious themes that "related to clearing of the soul," the report said.
Balla was arrested Friday on suspicion of committing murder. On Monday, she was denied bond during a hearing. The court ordered a mental health assessment for her.
Balla's lawyer, Jonathan Bull, could not be reached for comment.
