A “devil worshiper” dubbed the “Cannibal of Puebla” who allegedly killed his wife, ate her brain in tacos and used her skull as an ashtray has been arrested in Mexico, the Daily Mail reports.

The suspect, identified only as Alvaro, was arrested at the couple’s home in Puebla on July 2 and taken into custody. Police accuse the 32-year-old of murdering his wife – a mother of five – on June 29 while under the influence of a banned substance.

During questioning, he allegedly told officers that Santa Muerte (the Virgin of Holy Death) and the devil had ordered him to commit the crime.

After the murder, Alvaro allegedly dismembered the body of the victim Maria Montserrat Animas Montiel and placed her remains in plastic bags. He allegedly threw some of them into a ravine behind the house and kept the rest.

According to sources close to the case, he confessed to eating part of his wife’s brain in tacos and to using part of her crushed skull as an ashtray. Two days after the murder, he reportedly called one of his stepdaughters to confess his crime.

The victim’s mother, Maria Alicia Montiel Serran, told local media that Alvaro told one of her daughters to “come and get her mom because ‘I’ve already killed her and put her in bags.’ She revealed that Alvaro cut the body of the 38-year-old victim “with a knife, a chisel and a hammer”, even adding that he told her he “didn’t suffer”.

Maria Montserrat married Alvaro less than a year ago. He had five daughters, ages 12 to 23. The two youngest lived with the couple and, according to their grandmother, were subjected to violence and sexual harassment by Alvaro.

The victim’s family says Alvaro, a builder, is addicted to drink and drugs and was often violent towards his wife. According to the same testimonies, the couple often posted about the cult of Santa Muerte on social networks. The police announced that they found a black magic altar in their house.