Inset: Rebecca Castellanos (KABC/YouTube). Background: An apartment building in the 6800 block of Sepulveda Boulevard in Van Nuys, Los Angeles, Cali., where Graciela Castellanos allegedly killed her daughter (KABC/YouTube).
A mother in California has been accused of strangling and drowning her 7-year-old daughter in their bathtub — with neighbors saying they heard the child screaming, “Mommy, please no!” right before her alleged murder, which her fiance claims was fueled by the woman’s depression and fears over her immigration status.
Graciela Castellanos, 37, was allegedly suffering from mental health issues and was worried that she was going to be deported over her legal status, her fiance tells local ABC affiliate KABC, speaking under the condition of anonymity.
The man, who is not the father of Castellanos’ daughter, described Castellanos as an “almost perfect mom” who never harmed or told “a bad word” to the child, per KABC.
“She was the sweetest mom in the world,” the fiance said, noting how he got to the apartment after the cops were called, though it’s unclear by whom. “I never got to the apartment and saw the girl, or [Castellanos],” the man told KABC. “I got home after all of it happened. This happened at 4 p.m. or 5 p.m. and I got home at almost 7 on the dot,” he said.
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Rebecca Castellanos was found by Los Angeles police officers and paramedics at the apartment in the 6800 block of Sepulveda Boulevard at around 5:40 p.m. last Friday, April 11, unresponsive in the bathtub. She was later pronounced dead at the scene by first responders.
According to KABC, a neighbor who spoke to the outlet and also asked to remain anonymous said she heard the child screaming before the police arrived. Castellanos’ fiance said she suffers from mental and emotional health issues, which cause her to often scream and isolate herself until she can calm down. But she’s never been violent in the past, he insisted.
The man said he believed Castellanos was ultimately triggered by fears over the possibility that she may not be allowed to become a U.S. citizen, and would be deported as a result.
Her daughter’s death comes as immigration and deportations continue to be a heated issue in the United States and federal courts right now following President Trump’s decision to boot people under an 18th-century wartime authority.
Rebecca died of asphyxiation due to neck compression and drowning, according to the medical examiner.
Castellanos is expected to face a charge of murder and her bail has been set at $2 million.
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