In November of 2011, single mother Latoya Ammons and her three children, ages 7, 9, and 12 moved into a home, with her mother Rosa Campbell. 3860 Carolina Street in Gary, Indiana. By December, not long after moving into the home, the family would find swarms of black flies on their screened-in porch, even during snowy weather. All their attempts to kill the flies never worked.
At one point Rosa Campbell and her daughter began hearing footsteps in the basement coming towards the kitchen then the door creaking, but no one was ever there. One night they began seeing a shadowy figure of a man, he appeared to be pacing back and forth in their living room, upon investigating the shadow, they found muddy boot prints in the living room.
At one point, Rosa was choked by an unknown force, but thus far whatever this was, had only affected Latoya and her mother Rosa.
Though by March 10th, 2012 at around 2 a.m., the children, 7,9, and 12 began to be affected… Rosa and Latoya woke to screams from the 12-year-old. Arriving at her room, they found the young girl levitating above her bed.
After the incident, the young girl had no memory of what had happened. That evening, Latoya had guests visiting as they were grieving the loss of a loved one. Those guests refused to ever come back to her home again.
At another time one of her sons had his eyes roll back into his head. He began growling and saying in a deep voice, “it’s time to die”, and “I will kill you”. Latoya’s older son was thrown across a room by an unknown force, much like how his grandmother was choked by an unknown force.
Rosa Campbell finally told her daughter Latoya… it’s time to get help. They both knew this was something supernatural that was out of their control.
After reaching out to local churches who refused to listen they felt discouraged. Though one church listened and stated they believed their home had spirits in it. Explaining to the family that a cleansing was needed, they instructed the family to clean with bleach and ammonia as well as draw crosses in oil on every window and door in the home.
The church also suggested that Latoya pour olive oil on her children’s feet and hands as well as smear the sign of the cross on their foreheads.
Latoya and her mother Rosa also reached out to clairvoyants. Two clairvoyants stated that the home had more than 200 demons residing inside it.
One clairvoyant suggested the family move, but without funds to do so, this was not an option.
Another clairvoyant suggested creating an altar in the basement. Latoya went on to create the altar, which consisted of an end table covered with a white sheet, a white candle, statues of Mary, Joseph and Jesus and an open bible… opened to Psalm 91.
They then burned sage starting in the basement and working their way up through the rest of the home. The smoke from the sage was so thick and made it hard to breathe, but Latoya continued on to make crosses with the smoke.
They then went on to read Psalm 91 out loud from the bible.
For three whole days, the family experienced peace, but then the demons came back with a vengeance. The three children suddenly began to have evil smiles with bulging eyes and at times deep voices.
Shortly after the children became fully possessed, so did Latoya.
Latoya described being possessed as a feeling of lightheadedness, and weakness and she was always warm. Overall a feeling of being out of control.
Throughout the possession of Latoya and the children, her youngest son would sit in the closet and talk to what he described as another young boy who told him what it was like to be murdered.
Rosa stated at one time she saw her youngest grandson who was 7 at the time fly out of the bathroom as if someone had thrown him. At another time a headboard hit Latoya’s 12-year-old daughter and caused an injury that needed stitches.
Some nights, Latoya would take her children and mother Rosa to sleep in a hotel for peace.
On April 19th, 2012 Latoya went to her family doctor, Dr. Geoffrey Onyeukwu. She explained what was happening and hoped that somehow he could help. The Dr. stated her two sons were speaking in demonic voices and in a rage towards him. He and his medical staff witnessed the youngest boy be lifted into the air and thrown into a wall with no one touching him.
Both boys then passed out and would not come to, Latoya cradled one of her boys while grandmother Rosa held the other. The Doctor’s office called 911 and multiple officers and ambulances arrived.
The boys were transported to the Methodist Hospital Campus in Gary. Latoya was laughed at when she expressed a desire to anoint her son’s heads in olive oil, but staff would not allow her to see the boys. When her sons woke, the 9-year-old was calm.
Though the 7-year-old was not… He thrashed around, screaming. It took 5 men to hold him down.
The Dept. of Child Services were called to investigate Latoya Ammons for possible child abuse They believed Latoya had a mental illness and the children were performing for her. Hospital personnel examined Latoya and the children and found them all to be healthy with no marks or bruises. A hospital psychiatrist even stated that Latoya was of Sound mind.
During an interview with a mental health provider, the 12-year-old did state that she sometimes felt as if she were being choked and held down so she couldn’t move. At times she claimed she would hear a voice stating she would never see her family again.
Case manager Valerie Washington from the Dept. of Child Services met the family for an interview at the local hospital. During this interview, Valerie was accompanied by a registered nurse and the child’s grandmother Rosa Campbell. At one point during the interview, the 7-year-old had a weird grin on his face, he began growling and exposing his teeth. His eyes rolled back into his head and grabbed his older brother’s throat, locking his hand around until adults pried them apart.
After taking the interview into a small room, Valerie, the DCS worker, Rosa Campbell, their grandmother, and a registered nurse, the 7-year-old began to growl while staring into his brother’s eyes. He then stated in a demonic voice to his brother, “It’s time to die,” and “I will kill you.”
While the 7-year-old growled these words the oldest son began to head-butt Valerie, the DCS worker in the stomach. Rosa grabbed her grandson and began to pray over him.
During this chaos, the 9-year-old began to grin oddly and then walked backward up a wall to the ceiling. He then flipped over his grandmother Rosa and landed on his feet.
The registered nurse witnessed this and later told a newspaper, “There is no way he could’ve done that.”
Police later asked Valerie the DCS worker if the child had run up the wall as if performing a trick, but she stated, No, he glided backward on the floor up the wall to the ceiling.
With this undeniable proof, that was witnessed by many. A police report noted that Valerie Washington stated she did believe there could be an evil influence affecting the family. At this time DCS stepped in and took protective custody of Latoya’s children without a court order.
By April 20th, 2012, The Rev. Michael Maginot a priest at the St. Stephen, Martyr Parish in Merrillville, received a call from the hospital chaplain. The hospital chaplain asked Michael to perform an exorcism on a 9 year old boy.
Latoya Ammons boy.
Michael agreed to at least interview the family in the home after Sunday Mass. Visiting the home on April 22nd, 2012, he interviewed the family for two hours. During the two hours, the bathroom light would flicker, the kitchen blinds would swing, though there was no current in the air. Wet footprints began to appear on the living room floor.
Latoya suddenly began to experience a headache and would convulse when the crucifix was placed near her head.
After the two-hour interview had turned into a 4-hour interview, the priest stated he was convinced the family was in fact being tormented by demons as well as various ghosts in the house.
Before leaving he blessed the home, praying and sprinkling holy water from room to room. He also encouraged Latoya and her mother Rosa to leave the home as he didn’t feel it was safe. The family immediately moved in with a relative.
Nearly a week after the priest blessed the home Latoya and her mother Rosa had to visit the home to allow the DCS worker Valerie Washington view the condition of the home. Two officers accompanied Latoya and Valerie. One officer from the town of Gary and another from Hammond. Latoya refused to go into the home.
In the kitchen, a door led to the basement. This is where Latoya set up her altar and poured salt to ward demons off. She told the Hammonds officer that the demons seemed to come from the dirt area beneath the stairs.
The officer from the Gary police dept. Was the police chief, Austin. He had stated he had never believed in demons, but he did now. During his interview with Rosa, his recorder malfunctioned but when listening to it later, he would hear a voice saying, ‘Hey’. That same officer took photos of the home, particularly one in the basement of the stairs, it now appears to have a cloudy image that looks like a face. In another photo, there is a green image that appears to be a female.
Later after the home visit, the officer experienced another malfunction, but this time his police vehicle’s radio. Upon arriving home, he was unable to open his garage door as it appeared to be malfunctioning as well. In his personal vehicle, the driver’s seat began moving forward and backward on its own. After visiting a mechanic, it was determined the seat’s motor was malfunctioning, which could have led to an accident while driving.
Later in April of 2012, DCS did rule to take Latoya’s children from her citing that she did not regularly send them to school. Latoya stated that the children were oftentimes sick and rarely slept as a result of the demonic activity in the home.
During this separation of the Ammons family, Latoya and her children were examined by multiple psychiatrists. Latoya and her children still insisted that they were possessed by demons. In order to gain her children back DCS stated she needed to find a new home and a job as well as work on discipline that did not include religion or discussions of demonic possession.
On the afternoon of May 10th, 2012, Latoya, her mother Rosa, Gary Police Chief Austin, and two other officers went back for a visit to the home on Carolina Street. The group grew even larger as officers from Lake County arrived with a police dog and the priest Michael Maginot joined them.
Valerie Washington the DCS worker refused to go back to the home, so another DCS case manager joined in her place.
The police dog showed no interest in anything around the home, but the DCS caseworker found a slippery, sticky substance dripping in the basement.
The priest asked officers to look at the dirt under the stairs for a pentagram or anything else that indicated occult activity. Or to possibly search for a body which could lead to paranormal activity. Officers began digging a 4-foot by 3-foot hole in the dirt under the stairs.
They found the following : a pink press-on fingernail, a white pair of panties, a political pin for a shirt, a lid to a small pan for cooking, socks, but the bottoms had been cut off below the ankles, various candy wrappers, and an unknown metal object that appeared to possibly be a weight belonging to a drapery cord.
After finding these items, officers placed the dirt back and raked over it. Father Maginot blessed the dirt with some salt. Salt is believed to be a barrier to evil.
Samantha the DCS worker stood in the living room and complained that her left pinky tingle and suddenly felt broken. Within 10 minutes she felt as if she were having a panic attack, she left the home to take a few moments outside. Latoya Ammons had to do the same as she complained of a headache and pain in her shoulder. Austin the police chief indicated he did not wish to stay in the home past dark.
Officers stayed behind and found oil dripping from the blinds. To be sure no one had placed it there, the officers cleaned it off and secured the room only to come back and find more oil. Father Michael Maginot wrote a report and asked permission of the Bishop to perform an exorcism on Latoya Ammons.
The priest performed an intense blessing on the home and then an exorcism on Latoya. Two officers and Samantha the DCS caseworker attended the two-hour minor ritual.
After this ritual, Samantha was involved in a series of accidents, third-degree burns from a motorcycle, broken ribs from a jet skiing accident, and a broken ankle.
After Father Maginot told Ammons to research the names of the demons they had heard. She had found the name Beelzebub which was the lord of the flies and other names of demons that particularly preyed on children. Some of the names she had found were lieutenants and sergeants in the underworld.
In June 2012, Father Michael Maginot performed three major exorcisms of Latoya Ammons in the Merrillville Church. Between the second and the third exorcism, Father Maginot went on a retreat but left behind an assistant who was instructed to write the name of one of the demons and burn it if Latoya had any issues. Latoya began having nightmares and called Father Maginot on his retreat. He instructed the assistant to burn the envelope and save the ashes for a later church bonfire.
By the third exorcism, Latoya no longer convulsed during prayer. Latoya and her mother had moved to Indianapolis and six months after her children were removed from her care, they were returned to her. Latoya was able to pick them up from DCS in November 2012.
Were Latoya and her children possessed or was this a curse on the home… I guess we just leave this to the realms of the unexplained…
