Homeless woman killed, fetus stolen in Colombia

By: 3 years ago

Colombian police officers on patrol riding a motorbike | Twitter photo – Policía de Colombia

BOGOTA—Colombian authorities are investigating the brutal murder of a homeless woman who had her baby stolen from her slashed-open womb, allegedly by a paid hitman.

Police found the woman’s mutilated body last week in Soacha, near the capital Bogota.

At 37 weeks, she had been near the end of her pregnancy.

The woman’s throat had been slit and her abdomen cut open to remove the fetus, Soacha mayor Juan Carlos Saldarriaga told local radio on Tuesday.

The murder was allegedly committed at the request of a woman who had recently had a miscarriage and paid a man the equivalent of $4,000 to get her the baby.

Saldarriaga said the victim was apparently lured to a remote rural area with a promise of food.

The baby survived the attack and is in state care, though officials did not say whether the child was found with the alleged mastermind, who has been arrested.

The man who carried out the attack is still on the run.