Woman steals unborn baby from young mother’s womb

A childless woman stole an unborn baby from a young mother’s womb after attacking her and cutting the child out of her belly, it was reported today.

The 20-year-old woman, who was 37 weeks pregnant, was found dead with her stomach slashed open in an improvised C-section, according to reports.

Joelma Silva, 22, and accomplice Alex Carvalho, 18, were later caught by police as they fled with the baby, who had a superficial cut on his head but was healthy.

The duo admitted to luring the pregnant woman to a beauty spot near the town of Sao Sebastiao do Uatuma, in Brazil’s state of Amazonas.

Joelma Silva (left), 22, and accomplice Alex Carvalho (right), 18, were later caught by police as they fled with the baby, who had a superficial cut on his head but was healthy

According to police, Ms Silva said that she was unable to get pregnant after losing her first baby and was desperate to provide a son for her husband.

Paraded before Brazilian press yesterday she claimed she offered Carvalho around £1,000 to find a baby for her but said she didn’t know the woman would die.

The unnamed pregnant woman was a work colleague of Carvalho who he had invited to go for a motorbike drive in the remote jungle park, according to police.

Silva said: ‘So we went to Sao Sebastiao do Uatuma, but I didn’t think it would be that way. I though it would be a kidnapping, snatch the baby and leave the mother alive.

‘When we got there Alex rented a motorbike and took the girl on a drive. I stayed at my grandmother’s house. At 11 o’clock at night, Alex came back to get me, and said the woman was there.

‘When I got there, the woman had fallen on the ground, I heard her saying that her head was hurting, so Alex went and strangled her.

‘I took the knife, but it wasn’t me for opened her belly. I took the baby out from inside, took him in my arms and cut the umbical cord, wrapped him in a sheet and took him to my gran’s house. In the morning we took the boat back home.’

Police chief Claudenor Medeiros, from the town’s police station, said they were called after locals found the woman’s body in the Campo de Pelada Pimenta beauty spot.

He said: ‘We went to investigate and found that the victim had been pregnant. 

‘Then we received information that a woman had been seen carrying a newborn baby on a boat which was heading to Itapiranga.

‘The suspects were arrested as they arrived in Itapiranga, where they live, a town on the banks of the Amazon River 140 miles east of Manaus, on Thursday (19) morning.’

Carvalho said he regretted what he had done, adding: ‘I’ve never done anything like this before, I have no criminal record. She was my colleague. I’m sorry.’

The baby was taken to a local hospital, where he was breastfed by a local policewoman, before being left with an aunt of the victim. The two suspects have been charged with doubly-aggravated murder and remanded in custody.

A childless woman stole an unborn baby from a young mother's womb after attacking her and cutting the child out of her belly, it was reported today

A childless woman stole an unborn baby from a young mother’s womb after attacking her and cutting the child out of her belly, it was reported today

Police chief Claudenor Medeiros today claimed it was Ms Silva who carried out the caesarean.

He said: ‘Joelma did the cutting because she had already seen the C-section of her own baby. 

‘She claimed that she wasn’t able to get pregnant with her current husband and really wanted to give him a son of his own. 

‘She cut the woman with Alex’s help to get what she wanted and offered him 4,000 reals (£1000), which was never paid.

According to the policeman, Silva had also lied to her husband telling him that she was pregnant, and even went to do a pre-natal class so he would believe her.

The suspects were caught after passengers and crew on the boat they had taken became suspicious of the woman with a newborn baby in her arms who apparently didn’t have any materials or equipment to care for him, and who let the baby cry constantly.

He said: ‘The crew noticed that she wasn’t breastfeeding the child and got in touch with the police as soon as the boat arrived at its destination.’

 

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