This is a horrible story. I can’t lie to you and say that it’s going to all work out in the end. At the end of the day, a baby is dead, a mother is dead, and a father, and husband, is left without a family. Now, it may just be because I’m currently quite hormonal, but this story has me in tears.

Chicago Attack

This awful saga begins back in May when police found missing 19-year-old Marlen Ochoa-Lopez’s body in a garbage can. Police allege that on April 23, Clarisa Figueroa strangled Ochoa-Lopez then cut her baby out of her stomach. The media have been reporting this as a ‘womb raider’ attack. Figueroa then called emergency services and claimed that she had given birth to the baby. After being taken to the hospital, it was found that Figueroa had not given birth. However, it still took a little while before the alarm was raised. There’s even a photo out there of Figueroa standing over little baby Lopez, whilst she was still pretending he was her baby. (1)

The Deception Unravels

Marlen Ochoa-Lopez’s husband reported her missing on April 24. Two weeks after the report, on May 7, a friend recalled that the pregnant teen had arranged to visit the house of a woman she met on Facebook. Figueroa had advertised baby related items for sale on the social media platform and Ochoa-Lopez had arranged to purchase them. When police went to investigate this lead, Figueroa’s daughter ‘admitted’ that her mother had just had a baby.  Deputy Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan told CNN that DNA tests determined Figueroa was in fact not the mother of the baby and Ochoa-Lopez’s husband, Yovani Lopez, was the father. (1)

Father Reunited With His Baby

Lopez reunited with his baby boy at the hospital. A photo of the father-son pair together was reportedly taken moments before baby Lopez opened his eyes. “We were just praying and praying and he opened his eyes, and his dad said, ‘Oh my God, he opened his eyes!'” Cecilia Garcia, a student pastor who was assisting the family, told CNN at the time. “He suffered irrevocable brain damage. There’s no medicine, there’s no pill that can fix that. Only a miracle.” family spokesman Julie Contreras said while the baby was still alive. (1)

Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, Mother and Victim

Death of the Baby

There were many reports that baby Yovanni was on his way to making a recovery after reports surfaced that he was breathing on his own. Unfortunately, the celebrations were premature, as we found out on June 14. “It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of baby Yovanny Jadiel Lopez. He passed away this Friday, June 14, 2019, from his severe brain injury. Please keep his family in your thoughts & prayers as they go through this difficult time,” Contreras said. (2)

Clarisa Figueroa, Suspect

The Second Murder

Frank Avila, the attorney representing the family, spoke to the media, regarding the baby’s death, outside of Christ Medical Center. “Yovanni Lopez, the father, is in a great deal of mourning,” he said. Avila continued with a call to action. He requested that the police treat the death as a murder. “The baby did not just die, the baby was murdered and we demand justice. The baby did die of natural causes, of course, but natural causes that were inflicted by the brain injury cause from the asphyxiation of his mother. That was a murder and murder charges should be brought,” Avila said. (3)

Police have arrested three suspects in connection with this terrible incident. The arraignment date for the suspects will be June 26. There’s really no upside to this distressing story. All I can say is hold your loved ones close, and tell them how much they mean to you. You never know when something this senseless could happen.