Thursday, 4:30 PM
Police report: Roslindale mother poisoned her children
(George Rizer/Globe Staff)
Angela Vasquez pleaded not guilty today in West Roxbury District Court.
By Javier C. Hernandez, Globe Correspondent, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff
The Roslindale mother accused of two counts of murder apparently poisoned her two children with a bluish powder and wrote about her plans for the killings in a journal, according to a Boston police report filed today in court.
Observations made during the autopsies of Yasmine Burgos, 13, and Dennis Burgos Jr., 10, "were consistent with poisoning" and an open bottle was found with the "residue of a bluish powdery substance," according to the report, which outlined the charges against Angela Vasquez. Police said writings, journals, and statements made by the mother indicate she planned the killings.
Vasquez, 31, kept her eyes closed today during her arraignment today in West Roxbury District Court, shaking and sobbing as a psychologist said she was "actively suicidal" and had been looking for a way to kill herself in prison. Helene Presskreischer, a court clinician, said that Vasquez has a "life-long history of depression," had self-inflicted scratches on her body, and appeared to have stabbed herself in the abdomen.
Vasquez pleaded not guilty to the charges and was sent to be evaluated at the Eric Lindemann Mental Health Center in Boston. She is scheduled to return to court on Aug. 21.
On Sunday, police found Dennis Burgos lying in bed next to his mother, who had multiple stab wounds, and his sister in another bedroom, two law enforcement officials with knowledge of the investigation told the Globe. The condition of their bodies showed that they had been dead for some time, the officials said. Neighbors said they last saw the children alive on Friday.
Outside court today, Inez Pedraza, 28, who described herself as Vasquez's stepsister, said that the children's deaths shocked their family. "She was very good with her kids," Pedraza said in an interview. "Never in our minds would we think she’d do something like that."
Yasmine Burgos (right), 13, and Dennis Burgos Jr., 10, were found dead Sunday in their Roslindale apartment.
