Bella Bond Murder Trial: Demons, Occult At Center Of Opening Statements

BOSTON, MA – The mother of the dead toddler known for months only as Baby Doe believed her daughter was a demon or inhabited by one, the defense argued during the opening statements of the murder trial for Bella Bond. Michael McCarthy, the man who dated Bond's mother at the time of the girl's death, is on trial for the murder of the child.

Details about a relationship between the girl's mother and her then-boyfriend that circled around the occult were revealed Tuesday morning at Suffolk Superior Court. McCarthy, 36, of Quincy, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

Defense attorney Jonathan Shapiro said it was 41-year-old Rachelle Bond who was obsessed with evil spirits to the point of delusion. He at one point read a journal entry by Rachelle Bond that said international leaders gather to "torture and rape and kill these innocent children every year just so they can drink their blood and eat their flesh so that these reptilian demons can have a moment’s sanity," according to The Boston Globe.

Meanwhile, Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney David Deakin's opening statement said McCarthy had once "saged" their Maxwell Street apartment in Dorchester to rid it of evil spirits.

Deakin spoke about the discovery of Bella Bond's body on June 25, 2015. A woman walking her dog on Deer Island found the body, which was covered in bruises, had no shoes on, and was wrapped in two blankets tied to two garbage bags.

Rachelle Bond had Bella with Joe Amoroso, a fellow drug addict she met at Occupy Boston. Rachelle Bond went to a shelter for expectant mothers; Amoroso went to Florida with another woman. Amoroso was at court Tuesday but not present for the arguments as he could be a witness, the Globe reported.

Rachelle Bond would sell drugs to support her child, the prosecution said. She moved from a shelter to a Dorchester apartment in 2013 and met McCarthy in February of 2015, drawn to his interest in the occult, Deakin said. A heroin addiction also connected the two, he said.

Rachelle Bond had asked McCarthy to put Bella to bed the night of her death, Deakin said. Rachelle Bond had seen McCarthy hitting her, and he later allegedly threatened Rachelle Bond, telling her to keep quiet about the girl's death, even strangling her until she passed out. He allegedly stored Bella's body in a refrigerator before throwing it out.

It took investigators months to identify Bella's body, setting up a hotline and putting up billboards. Police caught a break in September in an investigation that led them to the home of Bond's Dorchester home. Rachelle Bond had allegedly texted a friend about what had happened, and that person contacted the police.

Rachelle Bond pleaded guilty in February to accessory after the fact to murder and larceny over $250 by false pretenses. She is expected to testify during the trial in exchange for being released from prison and two years of probation.