Share and Follow
Background: A section of the 700 block of South Arthur Avenue in Pocatello, Idaho (Google Maps). Inset: Marita Gonzales (Bannock County Sheriff”s Office).
A shocking incident unfolded in Idaho when a mother walked into her daughter’s room to discover a woman viciously attacking her child, authorities revealed.
Marita Gonzales, 32, faces charges of attempted murder and aggravated battery, according to the Pocatello Police Department. She is currently held at the Bannock County Jail.
The disturbing event took place on Sunday in a Pocatello apartment located on the 700 block of South Arthur Avenue. This southeastern Idaho city is home to approximately 60,000 residents. According to court documents, the 32-year-old victim had met Gonzales online and had invited her to the apartment she shared with her mother earlier that day, as reported by the Idaho State Journal.
At approximately 10 p.m., the 49-year-old mother reportedly heard a disturbance coming from her daughter’s bedroom. Upon entering, she was confronted with a harrowing scene — Gonzales allegedly stabbing her daughter 18 times. In the chaos, Gonzales is also accused of slashing the mother’s face with a knife before fleeing the scene.
She reportedly heard a commotion in her daughter’s bedroom and, upon entering, saw someone stabbing her daughter 18 times. The suspect — later identified as Gonzales — then allegedly cut the mother in the face with the knife before running from the home.
Law enforcement was called, and Pocatello police officers responded to the home to find the younger stabbing victim nude, covered in blood, with stab wounds all across her face, head, neck, and hands, the court records stated. She was transported to a local hospital before being airlifted about 160 miles south to a hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, where police reported her as being in stable condition after treatment.
The mother was brought to the local hospital, where she was treated and released, according to authorities.
The Pocatello Police Department said on Monday that it was looking for an “unknown male assailant” described as being “approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall, short hair, wearing a hat and a dark jacket.” However, investigators reportedly saw surveillance footage of the daughter and a person entering a store about an hour before the incident, eventually helping them identify their suspect as Gonzales.
She was arrested on Tuesday. According to the Idaho State Journal, she appeared in court on Wednesday and was ordered to be held on a $1 million bond.