Pregnant Teen Found Buried in Backyard with Baby Cut from Womb After Free Clothing Lure: Police

16-year-old Emily Azevedo Sena’s final fate was revealed in a press conference on Friday, where Cuiabá Civil Police Chief Caio Albuquerque told reporters the girl was nine months pregnant when she went missing on March 12.

Sena was quickly found, but unfortunately not in time to save her life. Police found her body buried in a backyard on March 13, leading to an arrest of a local woman.

Nataly Helen Martins Pereira, 25, has been charged with “triple-qualified homicide,” per a statement released by the Civil Judicial Police of Mato Grosso, translated into English via Google. The “triple-qualified” refers to vile motive, cruel means, and means that made it impossible for the victim to defend herself.

The suspect was additionally charged with concealment of a corpse, and registering someone else’s birth as her own, per the statement. While the suspect’s husband, brother, and a friend were all questioned, they’ve been released and not charged.

At the same time, Albuquerque said that the investigation is ongoing, so future charges remain possible. Authorities are also subjecting Pereira’s other three children to DNA tests to assure they are biologically hers.

According to the statement, Pereira admitted to planning and carrying out the murder of the pregnant teen for the purpose of obtaining her baby and masquerading it as her own.

She reportedly told authorities she was able to lure the expectant mother to her brother’s home with the promise of free baby clothing donations through social media.

Local news outlet g1 reports that Pereira told the teen she also had a crib bumper and sent her the address to pick them up. But once Sena arrived, Pereira allegedly told authorities she killed Sena and hid the body.

The statement reveals that police found the victim’s body in a shallow grave in the backyard, with part of her leg still visible. Her abdomen had been cut, suggesting forced labor. Police stated that forensic evidence determined she was still alive at the time her baby was removed.

The body allegedly also showed evidence of strangulation, asphyxiation, and hanging — as well as defensive wounds — with internet cables wrapped around her neck, hands, and legs, and two plastic bags over her head to muffle screams. Officials determined she died from blood loss, and not lack of air, as initially thought.

Police stated that by the time the body was found, both Pereira and her husband were already in custody. The other two individuals, who were found in the house, were then brought in for questioning, as well.

On the evening of March 12, the suspect and her husband arrived at the Santa Helena Maternity Hospital with a newborn baby, per the release, claiming that the birth had taken place in their home.

While the child was attended by medical professionals, Pereira reportedly refused treatment for herself initially. Eventually, however, she relented, with gynecological tests quickly determining that she was not postpartum.

Hospital officials stated that she went so far as to attempt to breastfeed the infant, but was not producing breast milk, which further raised the possibility for staff that she was not the child’s biological mother.

Suspicious, staff contacted the police, leading to the couple being taken into custody in an attempt to gain some clarity about their relationship with the baby. It was after interviewing the couple, per the statement, that police were able to connect it to the report of a missing pregnant teen.

In his press conference, Albuquerque told the media that Pereira revealed she had suffered a miscarriage six months prior, as reported by g1.

She claimed, per the outlet, that she had continued to act pregnant and did not tell anyone in her family that she had lost the baby, including her husband. She even purportedly continued her involvement in online support groups for expectant mothers.

Albuquerque further stated that Pereira did not show any remorse while talking with police about the alleged murder. Her husband Christian Albino Cebalho de Arruda, 28, told police he’d gone to the hospital after he was told that Pereira had given birth.

Pereira purportedly exonerated her husband, brother, and friend of any involvement in the death of Sena in her statements.

Speaking to g1 at a memorial on Friday for the teen, Sena’s mother Ana Paula Meridiane said, per Google translation, “I didn’t just lose a daughter, I lost a friend, partner and companion. Only those who lived with her know how wonderful her heart was.”

The outlet further reports that Sena’s baby is currently in the custody of her family, while its health is being monitored by pediatricians.