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Woman Held in Mexico Deaths of Sister, Russia-Born Mother

TIJUANA — State authorities in Mexico say they have arrested a 19-year-old woman who confessed to killing and mutilating her sister and her Russian-born mother.

Baja California state Deputy Prosecutor Jose Maria Gonzalez said Anastasia Lechtchenko was detained Friday afternoon in Tijuana. Officials say the woman had earlier confessed to police that she'd killed the two because they practiced witchcraft against her. But a judge did not order her arrested until prosecutors provided more evidence.

The dismembered bodies of 45-year-old Yulia Masney and 12-year-old Valeria Lechtchenko were found June 10 in plastic bags at their house in Playas de Tijuana, less than a mile (almost 1 kilometer) from the U.S. border.

A judge is set to decide whether there is sufficient evidence to prosecute the woman.

Both Anastasia and Valeria Lechtchenko were born in Mexico to Russian parents, the prosecutor's office said.

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