Man Accused of Beheading Girlfriend Says God Ordered Him to 'Strike' Her Down Because 'She Did Not Repent'

Vanessa Con
Vanessa Con, 27, was allegedly killed by her boyfriend and later decapitated in front of her 3-year-old daughter. Her boyfriend, 32-year-old Timothy Hernandez, was arrested on August 27 and charged with her murder. GoFundMe

A 32-year-old man is accused of murdering his 27-year-old girlfriend and decapitating her in Mount Vernon, Washington. The suspect, identified as Timothy Hernandez, allegedly told police that God had ordered him "strike down" his girlfriend Vanessa Con.

Hernandez was arrested and charged with first-degree murder on Monday. The 32-year-old was being held on $1 million bail.

Con's decapitated body and head were discovered by Hernandez's parents on Sunday after they returned home from the church. Mount Vernon Police said the couple found Con on the ground with her head placed on the back of her torso, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported.

Police responded to the home in the 1200 block of North 18th Street in Mount Vernon, approximately 60 miles north of Seattle. Hernandez's parents told police that they had left for church between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. without seeing their son or his girlfriend. They discovered her body around 12:45 p.m.

Hernandez and Con reportedly fought the night before she was found dead.

Authorities found Hernandez at the Cascade Mall in Burlington, Washington with his three-year-old daughter, police said.

"Timothy advised that he had spoken with God, who told him to strike down his girlfriend…because she did not repent," a detective wrote in charging documents, according to KIRO. "Timothy stated that he struck her down, and caused for her head to be removed from her body."

Hernandez reportedly quoted two Bible verses to officers relating to women who did not follow God's word.

Investigators discovered a large butcher knife in the kitchen sink and bloody clothes in the laundry. The knife had a clean blade but blood and human hair on the handle, according to Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

Hernandez told police he was "not crazy" because "a crazy person would not tell the truth."

His daughter spoke to investigators and told them "she saw Daddy cut Mommy with scissors," police said. The little girl reported hearing her mother scream and her father telling her that "she needed to go say goodbye to Mommy." The toddler said she "did not know why Mommy had her eyes closed and blood on her face."

Con's family established a GoFundMe to pay for funeral expenses. The page said Con has another 5-year-old child. As of Thursday, the fundraising page had reached $5,731 of its $10,000 goal.

Hernandez is set to be arraigned on September 6 at Skagit County Superior Court.

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Nicole Rojas is a Breaking News Reporter for Newsweek. Nicole previously worked at International Business Times UK, where she covered breaking ... Read more

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