An alleged demonic possession occurred in May 1953 when Clarita Villanueva, a 17-year-old girl incarcerated at the

Manila City Jail The Manila City Jail, popularly known as Old Bilibid Prison, is a detention center in Manila, Philippines. The jail is one of the most overcrowded in the world. History 19th and 20th centuries The Old Bilibid Prison, then known as (Spa ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

was said to have been bitten and tormented by two demonic entities and their followers. American pastor

Lester Sumrall Lester Frank Sumrall (February 15, 1913 – April 28, 1996) was an American Pentecostal pastor and evangelist. He founded the Lester Sumrall Evangelistic Association (LeSEA) and its humanitarian arm LeSEA Global Feed the Hungry, World Harvest Radio ...

was building a church in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, when the news broke of Clarita's possession. The case was widely and sensationally reported worldwide.

Background

Clarita Villanueva, whose mother was a spiritist and fortune teller, never knew her father. When she was 12 years old, her mother died, forcing her into a life of prostitution. She did not have an immediate family to take care of her and she became a vagabond. From her island province home, she made her way to

in the summer of 1953 looking for her father and settled in the district of

Malate Malic acid is an organic compound with the molecular formula . It is a dicarboxylic acid that is made by all living organisms, contributes to the sour taste of fruits, and is used as a food additive. Malic acid has two stereoisomeric forms (L ...

. Clarita was frequenting the bars and taverns of the city and soliciting men for harlotry. On May 6, 1953, she mistakenly offered her service to a plainclothes police officer and was incarcerated at the Old Bilibid Prison (now

), as she was a minor and prostitution was illegal. According to the grandson of the judge who handled Clarita's case, she was possessed in the middle of a hearing. Clarita described her attackers as a "very big dark man with curly hair all over the body" and "a body with an angelic face and a big mustache". Sumrall also claimed that Clarita was

Visayan Visayans (Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...

and can only speak the

Tagalog language Tagalog (, ; ; '' Baybayin'': ) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by the ethnic Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines, and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, ...

. However, she was able to

speak English Speak or SPEAK may refer to: * Speech, the vocal form of human communication People * Speak (Hungarian rapper) (born 1976), known for his song and music video "Stop the War" * Speak! (born 1987), American rapper and songwriter * Geoffrey Lo ...

during the alleged possession.

Timeline

May 7

Clarita Villanueva was arrested on charges of vagrancy. It was unclear, however, if she was also arrested on charges of prostitution.

May 19

Clarita was surrounded by "about 100 medical specialists, nurses and Pressmen" according to Rodolfo Nazareno, a reporter for the ''

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...

''. According to records, this was the first day when Pastor

and Clarita met, with the girl stating her hatred towards the pastor and God, and making blasphemous statements.

May 20

Manila Mayor

Arsenio Lacson Arsenio Hilario Sison Lacson Sr. (December 26, 1912 – April 15, 1962) was a Filipino journalist and politician who gained widespread attention as mayor of Manila from 1952 to 1962. An active executive likened by ''Time'' and ''The New York Ti ...

, who received reports about the incident, ordered that Clarita be brought to the city morgue so that he could see for himself. Within 15 minutes of sitting beside next to her, bite marks appeared on her index finger and neck. Lacson said that he saw the human bitemarks where Clarita had been bitten, and that "they were not made by her". Lacson was holding her hands when she was bitten. Clarita had been examined and was declared as mentally sound.

May 22

After three days of confrontation, Sumrall stated that the miracle of God came upon her and that Clarita said "He (the devil) went that way" and "He's gone". The third day was the final time that the demons reportedly tormented her before fleeing in defeat.

In popular culture

* The 2019 Filipino supernatural horror film '' Clarita'' was based on the events. * ''

Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho ''Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho'' (International title: ''One at Heart, Jessica Soho'' / ) also known as ''KMJS'', is a Philippine television news magazine show broadcast by GMA Network. Hosted by Jessica Soho, it premiered on November 7, 2004 on the ...

'' featured a story regarding the incident on ''Gabi ng Lagim IV''.

References

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