Ugly Betty Actor on Mother's Murder: "It Was the Work of God"

Michael Brea, the bit-part actor charged with murdering his own mother, said his actions were "the work of God."
Brea, who appeared on episodes of Ugly Betty and in the feature film Step-Up 3D, was arrested Tuesday after repeatedly stabbing his mother, 55-year-old Yannick Brea, with a sword. He is being held in the prison ward of Bellevue Hospital in New York, where his psychiatric health is being evaluated.

Ugly Betty actor charged with mother's slaying

Speaking to New York's Daily News, Brea was unrepentant about the attack. "I didn't kill her. I killed the demon inside her," he said. "It was the work of God."Brea told the newspaper that God visited him in a dream Sunday morning before the attacks. Brea was yelling passages from the Bible as he attacked his mother, neighbors said."She had the voice of the demon," Brea said. "I asked, 'Do you believe in God?' She said, 'No, Michael no,' and began screaming. ... I didn't want to kill her right away. I wanted to give her time to get right with God."

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Throughout the ordeal, Brea said he felt almost superhuman. "I felt like Neo from The Matrix. I began hearing voices and feeling powerful," Brea said. "They were asking about the difference between mom and mother. It was a sign.
"I was slashing my mom and I heard the police knocking on the door yelling, 'Michael, open up, Michael, open up,' but I knew they wouldn't open the door and stop me because the spirits were protecting me," he said. "I just kept cutting her. No one could stop me. I was doing the work of God. ... I heard voices telling me how powerful I was, saying, 'Oh, he's good.'"
Brea has been charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon.