- Paula Janaína Ferreira Melo was lured to her murderer’s apartment on Tuesday
Police arrested a woman who allegedly massacred her pregnant neighbor to remove her unborn baby from the womb so she could raise him as her own child.
Victim Paula Janaína Ferreira Melo, 25, was lured to her killer’s apartment on Tuesday in Porto Alegre, Brazil, with the promise of a new stroller for her soon-to-be-born child.
But when she arrived, her 42-year-old neighbor allegedly killed her and cut the fetus with a knife.
The alleged killer, whose name has not been identified by police, called paramedics saying she had just given birth alone at home.
Then, shockingly, she smeared her legs and the floor with blood and placed the baby between her legs to make it look as if she had just given birth, according to local media.
Paula Janaina Ferreira Melo, 25, was murdered after her neighbor allegedly massacred her and removed her unborn baby from her womb.
Police have since arrested the anonymous killer. He reportedly lured his victim to his apartment before killing her. She planned to pass the baby on as her own.
Police investigation chief Graziela Zanelli said: “She created a scene that supposedly showed that she had given birth in her room, with blood and the child between her legs.”
She was rushed to the nearby Conceicao Hospital, where doctors declared the baby dead upon arrival.
The suspicious doctors called the police when tests showed that the woman was not the baby’s mother.
Local media reports say she was arrested and now faces two counts of murder and another charge of concealing a corpse.
The scheming suspect had pretended to be pregnant for two months while bonding with her intended victim to find out exactly when she was due to give birth.
He had planned to leave the baby as his own.
Police found Paula’s body wrapped in plastic and hidden under a bed in her killer’s apartment.
The head of the investigation, Zanelli, explained that she had a history of trying to get pregnant and not being able to do so.
“She planned to have the child taken on the same day as his birthday, October 14, and told all her family and friends that she was pregnant.”
Paula is survived by a seven-year-old daughter and was also the adoptive mother of her four-year-old niece.
The baby she was expecting would have been her first child with her current partner.
Her brother-in-law Bruno Lopes told local media: “My brother treated the two girls as if they were his own daughters.
Paula Janaina Ferreira Melo, 25, poses with an unidentified child in an undated photo
‘But they were delighted at the idea of having their first biological child together.
“My brother is devastated.”
She said that Paula had already bought diapers, clothes and toys for her son, but that she was delighted to be offered a new stroller for the little one.
Her scheming killer had approached her via Facebook, offering help with bills and even paying for a scan to make sure her fetus was healthy.
Bruno said: ‘She decided to pick him up at the killer’s house because it was nearby.
“But she was lured and killed by a monster.”
Paula’s heartbroken mother, Janaina Ferreira Melo, told local media: “It’s diabolical. My daughter was innocent, they tempted her with gifts and then killed her.
Judge André Vorraber Costa ordered the suspect’s preventive detention on Wednesday while the police investigation continues.