A 72-year-old woman from North Carolina, USA was on Tuesday charged with murder for mercilessly beating her granddaughter to death and then dumping her body on the side of the road in Nash County.

The accused Patricia Ann Ricks was charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse with a serious injury.

A statement from the Nash County Sheriff’s Department revealed that on the day in question at around 4:00 p.m., the department was notified of an 8-year-old who was brought into the emergency room at Nash UNC Healthcare with severe injuries and was declared dead upon arrival.

The victim suffered multiple blows to her head and had multiple lacerations over her body.

Shortly after an investigation was launched and it was determined that the victim was severely beaten by her grandmother using a metal object.

The motive for the beatings, however, has not yet been disclosed as the accused and her other grandchildren have remained tightlipped about the entire ordeal.

Ricks was later charged for her role in the ordeal while the remaining children were taken into state care.

The accused is currently being held without bond at the Nash County Detention Center.