Arkansas woman killed in bed by hammer to head; granddaughter pleads guilty, claimed ‘sacrifice to God’

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (TCD) --

An Arkansas woman was sentenced to 36 years in prison after admitting to killing her grandmother “as a sacrifice to God,” according to prosecutors.

Andrea Lea Wilson, 28, was arrested in May 2018 after Wilson's grandmother Ruby Ross, 81, was found dead at her home in Pea Ridge. The medical examiner determined Ross died by blunt force trauma to her head, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

Wilson went to her grandmother's house on May 15, 2018, for dinner, and after her grandmother went to sleep, Wilson allegedly hit Ross four times with a hammer, KNWA-TV reports.

Ross’s daughter found her mother in bed with “a large open wound to her head” the next day. An autopsy confirmed she was killed with a hammer.

Responding deputies found blood on the bed’s headboard, and found a trash bag in an outhouse containing a hammer with blood and white hair on it, KNWA reported. Deputies also found rubber gloves, a butcher knife, and a bank statement with Andrea Wilson's name on it.

Prosecutors said Wilson believed God told her to make a sacrifice or she would be sent to hell, as the Democrat-Gazette quotes a prosecutor. Wilson said May 15, 2018, was the last day to perform the sacrifice.

Prosecutors said earlier on the same day, May 15, 2018, Wilson struck a man riding his bicycle at about 1:45 a.m., knocking him off his bike, court documents say.

Wilson underwent mental evaluations, and reportedly said she was not taking her prescribed lithium on May 15.

Wilson pleaded guilty Monday, April 13, to first-degree murder, aggravated assault and battery. A capital murder charge was dropped in exchange for her guilty plea.

Wilson will be eligible for parole after 19 years in prison.

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