EVERETT, Wash. – A mother in the state of Washington is accused of stabbing her 4-year-old son 41 times and then dumping his body, which was wrapped in a blanket, on the side of a highway, authorities said.
Janet Garcia, 27, was formally charged on Friday with first-degree murder in the death of her young son, Ariel Garcia, in Everett, Washington. She was arraigned on Monday when prosecutors argued the number of stab wounds showed the attack against Ariel was “prolonged,” the Everett Herald reported.
Although investigators initially identified 16 “sharp force wounds,” an autopsy later revealed there were 41 stab wounds and concluded to boy died of “homicidal violence,” reported Law&Crime.
Preceding the boy’s death, Ariel was at the center of a custody dispute between his mother and grandmother, KOMO reported.
According to court records, Ariel’s grandmother filed a petition for guardianship two days before she reported him missing on March 27 under “suspicious circumstances.”
The boy’s body was discovered along Interstate 5 in Pierce County during the evening of March 28.
His grandmother wrote in the affidavit seeking custody, “I love my grandson, and I want to protect him from whatever his mom is capable of while she is on drugs. He trusts me and feels safe with me. Since I have cared for Ariel all these years, I am already aware of his needs.”
Sadly, she proved to be spot on with her analysis. Garcia is “not capable of parenting” while on drugs and has been exhibiting “very violent and unpredictable” behavior, the grandmother cautioned in the petition.
Garcia is being held on a $3 million bond at the Snohomish County Jail.
“On behalf of the Everett Police Department, I want to share our condolences with the loved ones of young Ariel Garcia. This is not the outcome we had hoped for,” Everett Police Chief John DeRousse said in a statement.
The city of Everett is about 30 miles north of Seattle.
