JUAN SOLDADO Rapist, Murderer, Martyr, Saint

Softcover. The author offers a fascinating look at the events, beliefs, and circumstances that have motivated popular devotion to Juan Soldado, a Mexican folk saint. In his mortal incarnation, Juan Soldado was Juan Castillo Morales, a 24yr old soldier convicted of and quickly executed for the rape and murder of 8yr old Olga Camacho in Tijuana in 1938. Immediately after Morales's death, many people began to doubt the evidence of his guilt, or at least the justice of his brutal execution. People reported seeing blood seeping from his grave and hearing his soul cry out protesting his innocence. Soon the "martyred" Morales was known as Juan Soldado, or John the Soldier. Believing that those who have died unjustly sit closest to God, people began visiting Morales's grave asking for favours. Within months of his death, the young soldier had become a popular saint. Although Juan Soldado was never canonised by the Catholic Church, thousands of people have made pilgrimages to his gravesite. This is the first book to situate the story of Juan Castillo Morales within a broader exploration of how and why popular canonisations such as his take root and flourish. A gripping true crime mystery which opens up into a much larger and more elusive mystery of faith and belief. Illus., Notes, Sources and Index. 332pp. 8vo. softcover. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. F. with no creasing to covers.