Haunting three-word scream of California girl, 7, as she was drowned 'by mom who feared she'd be deported'
A young California girl was found dead in her apartment after screaming 'Mommy, please no' in a heartbreaking final plea before her mother allegedly drowned her in the bathtub.
Rebecca Castellanos, 7, was tragically found dead in a bathtub on Friday evening, with the Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Office ruling her death as asphyxiation due to neck compression and drowning, NBC 4 reported.
Identified as the primary suspect, her mother, 37-year-old Graciela Castellanos, was arrested and taken into custody on a $2 million bail.
'With passive bipolar disorder and the depression of potentially being unable to become a legal resident, all of this drove her to do what she did,' Rebecca's stepfather and Graciela's fiancé, who wished to remain anonymous, told NBC 4.
'I'm sure she was out of her mind when she attacked the girl.'
On Friday evening, a neighbor of the Van Nuys apartment complex reported hearing the haunting cries and screams of the child, ABC 7 reported.
Shortly after, Los Angles police and paramedics arrived to the apartment in the 6800 block of Sepulveda Boulevard at around 5:40 pm.
Rebecca was pronounced dead at the scene, prompting authorities to arrest her mother on suspicion of murder.
Rebecca Castellanos, 7, was found dead in a bathtub on Friday evening inside her California apartment, with a neighbor reportedly hearing the haunting cries of a child screaming, 'Mommy, please no. Mommy, please no' before the tragic discovery
The seven-year-old girl was pronounced dead at the scene, with the Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Office ruling her death as asphyxiation due to neck compression and drowning
Identified as the primary suspect, her mother, 37-year-old Graciela Castellanos, was arrested and taken into custody on a $2 million bail (pictured: Castellanos handcuffed in transport chair)
Castellanos' fiancé, whose name has not been released, arrived home around 7 pm to find police surrounding their upstairs unit - initially unaware of what horrors just unfolded right inside.
He said that Castellanos struggled with mental and emotional issues, which, at times, led her to scream and isolate herself.
However, the fiancé - who had planned to adopt Rebecca after marrying Castellanos in two months - emphasized that she was never violent during her episodes and was able to calm herself down, ABC 7 reported.
'First, I want to say that my wife was an almost perfect mom,' he said to the outlet in Spanish.
'She never told a bad word, yelled at the girl, didn't hit her. She was the sweetest mom in the world.'
Additionally, he revealed to NBC4 that the 37-year-old mother allegedly attempted to take her own life on the evening of her daughter's murder.
He believes that Castellanos' mental health struggles, combined with the growing realization that she might never obtain legal residency in the US, may have been the driving force that pushed her over the edge.
'She was the most loving person in the world,' he told the outlet.
Castellanos' fiancé, whose name has not been released, stated that she struggled with mental and emotional issues, which, at times, led her to scream and isolate herself - yet he emphasized that she was never violent during these episodes
Castellanos' fiancé believes that the 37-year-old mother's mental health struggles, combined with the growing realization that she might never obtain legal residency in the US, may have been the driving force that pushed her over the edge
Neighbors were left in utter shock by the unexpected tragedy, describing the family as 'humble' throughout their friendly interactions, NBC 4 reported.
'It's a feeling of sadness because my thought is that she was a mother who perhaps had no support at all,' Ana Diaz, a neighbor, told the outlet.
Norma Amador, another neighbor, concurred, adding: 'It's like a state of shock, something in my stomach and in my heart. It feels like a feeling because I'm a mother.'
Castellanos was handcuffed to a transport chair and taken into custody where she remains behind bars.
An investigation led by the LAPD is still ongoing.
The tragic death comes amid Donald Trump's mass crackdown on illegal immigrants.
Earlier this month, the 78-year-old president revealed that more than illegal 100,000 immigrants have been deported from the US since taking office on January 20, Newsweek reported.
Less than three months ago, an 11-year-old girl from Texas took her own life after classmates threatened to call Immigration and Customs and Enforcement (ICE) to have her deported.
On February 3, Jocelynn Rojo Carranza was found unresponsive in her Gainesville home and spent five days in intensive care in Dallas before ultimately passing away.
Her family believed relentless bullying drove her to suicide, according to a GoFundMe page, as Jocelynn feared ICE would deport her family.
'The kids said because your family is Hispanic, that they were going to call ICE so her parents could be taken away and she would be left alone,' grieving mother Marbella Carranza told the local Univision station.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump revealed that more than illegal 100,000 immigrants have been deported from the US since he took office on January 20
On February 3, Jocelynn Rojo Carranza, an 11-year-old girl from Texas, took her own life after classmates threatened to call Immigration and Customs and Enforcement (ICE) to have her deported
The bullying went on for months, according to the single mom of six, with the sixth grader seeing a school counselor to report the bullying.
However, the mother claimed that she was never made aware of the torment her daughter had been enduring until after her death.
'The school was aware of what was going, but they never informed me,' Carranza, who earns a living by cleaning homes, told the outlet.
'She apparently went once or twice a week to the counselor to report what was happening,' the mom stated.
'I want justice because it was an oversight by the school not to have told me what was going on.'
For weeks, rumors of ICE raids and deportations circulated at Carranza's school, Gainesville Intermediate School, according to the network.
Jocelynn was an American citizen, her family told the outlet, which did not report her family's legal status.
