Five South Koreans have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the death of a relative in an exorcism ritual, German officials said Thursday, NBC News reported.
Officers discovered the body of the 41-year-old woman in a Frankfurt hotel room Saturday when the suspects called a priest after it became apparent that the victim had died, prosecutor Nadja Niesen said.
Niesen said the suspects wanted to expel a "demon" they believed had possessed the woman. They exerted "massive force on her chest and stomach area" while stuffing a towel and clothes hanger into her mouth to stop her screaming, she said.
The suspects were identified as relatives of the victim — a 44-year-old woman, her 21-year-old son and 19-year-old daughter, and two 15-year-old boys, one of whom is the son of the dead woman.