The town of Vilamarxant woke on Monday to a chilling report from a neighbor about a crime that stained the community. A one-year-old boy died after a violent attack, and the alleged perpetrator, Cristina S.N., a 36-year-old woman, reportedly acted in a state of paranoid delusions. She allegedly slit the child’s throat with a kitchen knife and then attempted suicide by leaping from the roof of the adjacent farm. Despite the fall, the child was saved from his injuries by a passing car’s cushioning impact and was rushed to La Fe Hospital in Valencia with a guarded prognosis.
Eric, born on February 22, had celebrated what would have been his first birthday recently. Tragically, his mother is said to have taken her own life this Monday as authorities investigated a possible mental health crisis at the family home on Pobla de Vallbona Street in Vilamarxant. The father, a service member stationed at a naval base, reportedly knew of his wife’s mental health struggles and had been seeking help as the situation deteriorated. Sadly, it was too late to save them both.
The alleged killer had reportedly appeared in court just weeks earlier and had been receiving mental health support at the local health center. According to multiple sources, the woman had been suffering from postpartum depression for months, a condition that may have worsened an underlying mental illness that had not yet been diagnosed.
The 36-year-old mother was hospitalized after the fall from the fourth-floor roof.
Neighbors described Cristina as losing her grip on reality while noting that the disturbing actions may have begun from paranoid beliefs. Investigators found a handwritten note at the home describing persecutory thoughts directed at both herself and the child. The Civil Guard has been leading the probe, with assistance from the local police, as the investigation continues.
The incident occurred shortly before ten in the morning after a neighbor reported seeing a woman fall from the roof on Camp del Túria Street. Local police and Civil Guard officers attended the scene and provided first aid to the woman until medics arrived.
The Civil Guard identified the residence as a farm on Calle Pobla de Vallbona, with the suspect living on the third floor. Firefighters were requested to access the property, where they found the murdered child and the weapon, a kitchen knife, still embedded in the body. The infant’s body was transported for medical examination and autopsy was requested to further illuminate the circumstances surrounding the event.
After the attack, the mother reportedly attempted to escape via the terrace by climbing a ladder and moving to the back section of the building.
The alleged killer sustained injuries during the escape and was evacuated to hospital under guard after being stabilized and intubated. She remained under the Civil Guard’s control as investigators pursued every lead.
At approximately 12:30 p.m., a court representative ordered the body to be moved to the Valencia Institute of Legal Medicine for autopsy. Police investigators conducted a thorough examination of both the home and surrounding terrace to shed light on the sequence of events. The Civil Guard, with the support of the Llíria Judicial Police, continues to puzzle out the timelines and motives behind the crime.
It appears the suspect harmed herself after slitting her child’s throat and then moved to the terrace with the boy. After removing a ladder from a storage area, she climbed onto the rear roof and walked along the edge toward a ledge. Witnesses noted the presence of blood as she moved toward another terrace, eventually stepping into space from the fourth height. The child, tragically, did not survive.
“Even if she survives, the consequences of this act will haunt her forever.”
Neighbors who knew Cristina described the woman as someone who lived with her partner and two children in Vilamarxant since 2017. They noted recent treatment for mental health concerns but said there was no documented history of suicide in either family before this incident. The Vilamarxant City Council has announced two days of official mourning, and a minute of silence was observed at the church gates at noon today in memory of the child.