RICHMOND -- Police have arrested the mother of an 8-year-old boy on suspicion of child endangerment, torture and murder in what police were calling one of the most disturbing crimes ever investigated by the Richmond Police Department.

"Based on the obvious physical abuse, it's just horrific what this child went through," said Lt. Mark Gagan.

According to the Contra Costa County Coroner, the boy was identified as Raijon Daniels.

Police believe that the child had been abused for months and possibly years before being murdered, Gagan said.

He was home-schooled for at least this year, Gagan said.

Rescuers received a call for help at about 5:15 p.m. Saturday that led them to the 700 block of S. 40th St. in Richmond. The boy was unresponsive when they arrived, according to Richmond police. He was taken to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

His mother, 23-year-old Teresa Moses, was taken to the police department for questioning after the incident and later arrested. She has been booked into county jail.

Police were still waiting on a report from the Contra Costa County Coroner for a specific cause of death, but Gagan said that police were confident that they have enough evidence to prove the torture and child endangerment charges even without a cause of death.

If convicted of all the charges, Moses could face a life sentence, Gagan said.