An Arizona mom has been charged with attempted murder after police say she tried to kill her eight-year-old autistic son multiple times.
Erica Encinas, 36, is accused of hitting the boy over the head with a rock on May 26, according to the Mesa Police Department.
Investigators say that Encinas called 911 to report her injured son, who has not been identified, and the youngster was taken to the hospital. He is expected to survive the alleged attack.
Prosecutors claim Encinas initially planned to drown her son in a canal before using the rock as a weapon. Officials said the woman also smothered her son with a trash bag, choked him with a rosary and hit him over the head with tile flooring.
The boy’s 12-year-old sister tried to intervene in the attack, police noted, and was allegedly bitten by her mother.
Child Protective Services is now involved in the case.
Encinas has also been charged with child abuse and aggravated assault. She’s being held on a $250,000 bond.
One of the woman’s neighbors, Jay Magana, lives across the street and spoke to KCBD 11 after the incident. He said police had been called to the home several times, but didn’t expect something like this to happen.
“We’re neighbors... and sometimes, families fight,” he told the outlet. “Most of the time, I see the kids playing outside, being good, and we wave when we go by. But when you hear something like that, it’s shocking.”
