'Our baby's the devil', say Colombian parents whose child can 'walk at four weeks and breathes fire'



Four-week-old 'already hides around the house and cackles for hours with intimidating eyes'

Terrified neighbours throw stones at the house - but doctors search for signs of child abuse



Black magic and evil spirits have captured the soul of a new-born baby in Colombia who can apparently already walk by himself and produce fire, his own mother has claimed.

Ana Feria Santos gave birth to her son last month but says her joy quickly turned to fear when she noticed that he had 'several abnormalities' - leading to fears in her community that he is the 'devil in disguise'.

She says the boy can already stand up and walk - quite a feat for a child of just four weeks.

Much like the 1976 horror film The Omen, the mother-of-five says he frequently hides around the house, cackles in an 'adult' way for hours on end and has an 'intimidating' pair of eyes.

Lorica, Columbia: Neighbours of Ana Feria Santos are 'terrified' of her son - even throwing stones at the home in protest

The devil in disguise? The story echoes that of Damien, played by Harvey Stephens, in the 1976 film The Omen

She told the RCN Radio station: 'He walks like an adult, sometimes going off and hiding underneath the bed, in a suitcase, in the washing machine or in the fridge.'

A worry for the neighbours: The family live in Lorica, Columbia

Her neighbours in the town of Lorica, near the Caribbean coast, also say he is possessed by a 'malign spirit' and that he is capable of producing fire.

This, they say, is because burn marks have been found on his clothes and a sofa where he regularly sits.

It has led to vigilante attacks on Santos and her taxi-driver husband Óscar Palencia López's house, which is allegedly being pelted with stones on a nightly-basis by frightened residents.

But the 28-year-old's story has not been believed by doctors, who have now launched an investigation into the possibility that the new-born could have been abused.

The Colombian Family Welfare Institute, the National Police and the Catholic Church have also all refused to assert the claims that black magic is involved.

A team of psychologists, a social worker, a nutritionist and a lawyer will now look into the case, with a source saying: 'The child shows signs of abuse.

'Two small burns were found on the palm of the left hand and for that reason a restoration measure was adopted to [safeguard] the family environment.

