Cesarean Kidnapping: the kidnapping of a child from the womb
by means of cesarean section. Individual perpetrators seem to be exclusively
women, sometimes with an accomplice (male or female). An area which requires
further study is cesarean kidnapping under governmental supervision such as
those committed in Argentina during the “Dirty War.”
A 2002 article by forensic psychologist Anne Burgess offered the label "newborn kidnapping by Caesarean section" to describe this type of crime. (Journal of Forensic Sciences, Jul. 2002)
A 2002 article by forensic psychologist Anne Burgess offered the label "newborn kidnapping by Caesarean section" to describe this type of crime. (Journal of Forensic Sciences, Jul. 2002)
30 Cases Total Known Internationally 1974-2015 (23 in USA).
***
Date of Crime: ca Nov. 13, 1974; Nov. 18, 1974 (body found), Frankfurt,
Pennsylvania.
Mother: Margaret Sweeney (26), shot 3 times & hacked 20
times with hatchet; has 3 children, 18 mo plus 2 living with estranged husband.
Perpetrator: Winifred Ransom (35): acquitted Jul. 11, 1975
as insane “schizophrenic.”
released as “cured” in 1977.
C-Section: removed baby with “butcher knife.”
Child: girl (8 months), survived.
2) Argentina (1976 – 1983 – Multiple cases in Argentina
“Dirty War”).
Dates of Crimes: 1976 – 1983.
Mothers: Many thousands of victims (collectivist rather than
individualist crimes; democide).
Perpetrator: Collectivist government dictatorship, Argentina.
Adopters: military officers & others chosen by military
dictatorship.
C-Section: Performed by physician under government sanction.
Children: fake identity papers, adopted out but told adopters
are real parents.
NOTE: It is likely that other government-sanctioned cases
from other collectivist regimes will be added later.
3) 1987 – Ray – 1 murder.
Date of Crime: Jul. 24, 1987, Albuquerque, New Mexico (Jul.
23?).
Mother: Cindy Lynn Ray (23), strangled; Father is Samuel Ray;
Mormons.
Perpetrator: Darci Kayleen Pierce (19), the wife of an
airman stationed at Kirtland Air
Force Base (sentenced to life imprisonment); appealed in
1998.
C-Section: had surgery tools and medical books ready, but
didn’t have access so used
“plan-B,” Car key.
Child: girl, Amelia Ray (8 ½ months), survived; 6 lb, 2 oz, 2
weeks “premature.”
Book: Jim Carrier, Hush Little Baby, 1992.
Date of Crime: Sep. 1, 1992; Brownsville, Texas &
Matamoros, Mexico.
Mother: Laura Lugo (25); Kidnapped to Mexico for C-Section
in Clinica Matamoros.
Recovered child after 2 years; Murdered a year later in
unrelated crime.
Perpetrators: Paulyna Botello (31?), extradited to Mexico
after losing custody of child;
Rosa Botello.
C-Section: Performed by Cecilia Noble, licensed Midwife in
Matamoros, Mexico.
Child: boy, Jorge Daniel, survived; but K’d for 2 years before
recovery; falsified birth records.
5) 1995 – Evans / Ward – 3 Murders.
Date of Crime: November 16, 1995: Addison, Illinois.
Mother: Deborah Evans, stabbed repeatedly, shot in head.
Other victims: 2 children; Jordan (1 ½ survived), Joshua
Evans (7) poisoned, Samantha
Ward (10) stabbed.
Perpetrators: Fedell Caffey, Jacqueline Annette Williams
(adopter) sentenced to death,
Levern R. Ward (father of cv); clemency 2002.
C-Section: Scissors.
Child: boy, Elijah (Ward/Evans), 9-month survived.
Book: Bill G. Cox, Special Delivery, 2001.
6) 1996 – Curry – 1 murder.
Date of Crime: Jan. 31, 1996 Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Mother: Carethia Curry (17), shot twice in head, boy sealed
in trash can and dumped into
Ravine.
Perpetrators: Felecia Scott (29), “best friend” of victim;
has 2 sons; sentenced to life without parole; Frederic Polion (37), sentenced
to 20 years, Angela Burton (Felicia Scott’s sister) convicted of hindering
prosecution, sentenced to 17 years, conviction overturned.
C-Section:
Child: girl (9 mo), survived.
Book: Diane Fanning, Baby Be Mine: The Shocking True Story
of a Woman Accused of
Murdering a Pregnant Mother to Steal Her Child, 2006.
TV: “Arrest & Trial” (TV series) “Baby Snatcher” episode
(2000).
7) 1998 – Flores – 2 Murders.
Date of Crime: Sep. 14, 1998; Fresno, California.
Mother: Margarita Flores (40); body dismembered, found in
Tijuana; Father: Heliodoro Cruz.
Perpetrator: Josephine Sonia Saldana (40); Serafin Rodarte
(“Witness”) suicide.
C-Section: Method unknown: only head, forearm and hand were
found.
Child: girl, Doraelia (8 ½ mo), died.
8) 2000 – Ganief – Attempted Murder.
Date of Crime: Mar. 2, 2000; Cape Town, South Africa.
Perpetrator: Lazerene Mannoe, 26, former Nambian police
officer, pregnant; She was found unfit for trial and declared a ward of the
state.
Mother: Tasmidah
Ganief, 16, survived; rescued by Vannessa Poleman, 17, Donovan Meiring, 16, and
Shamiel Hassiem.
C-Section: breadknife & scissors.
Child: boy, survived.
9) 2000 – Draper – 2 murders.
Date of Crime: June 17, 2000; Fernley, Nevada.
Mother: Kathaleena Louisa Draper (17), asphyxiated, rubber
glove in throat, body found in dump in garbage bag.
Perpetrator: Erin Rae Kuhn Brown (31), aunt; Adoption
dispute.
C-Section: Butcher knife.
Child: boy, died; found in garbage bag.
10) 2000 – Andrews – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: Sep. 27, 2000: Ravenna, Ohio.
Mother: Theresa Andrews (23), shot in back.
Perpetrator: Michelle Zonko Bica (39), suicide, locked self
in bedroom when police arrive for questioning shot herself, baby was sleeping
nearby.
C-Section: method unknown.
Child: Oscar Gavin Andrews (9 months), b survived.
11) 2002 – Kaiser – Attempted Murder.
Date of Crime: Dec. 16, 2002; Fullerton California.
Mother: Elsa Kaiser (30), survived; stabbed; F = husband.
Perpetrator: Charnetta Simmonsabduel (Charnetta Lavia
Simmons) (30), sentenced to life
C-Section: Victim escaped before incision.
Child: (9 mo), survived, born Dec. 20, 2002.
12) 2003 – Simpson – 2 Murders.
Date of Crime: Dec. 22, 2003: (last seen) Holdenville,
Oklahoma.
Mother: Carolyn Simpson (21), shot in head; Father, Allen
Simpson.
Perpetrator: Effie Goodson (37), acquaintance, not tried
(“incompetent”).
Preparation: faked pregnancy; baby shower.
C-Section: Method unknown.
Child: boy (6 mo), died.
13) 2004 – Cartagena – Attempted Murder.
Date of Crime: Jun. 1, 2004, Girardot, near Bogota, Colombia.
Mother: Solangela Cartagena (25); saved by surgery; drugged,
Caesarean was professional” yet “leaves, stones and sand were found in the
womb” witnessed by Nicole (2).
Perpetrator: Luzmila Fierro, mother of 6.
C-Section: Razor blade (torn uterus).
Child: boy, Miguel (8 mo) survived.
14) 2004 – Stinnett – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: Dec. 16, 2004, Skidmore, Missouri.
Mother: Bobbie Jo Stinnett (23), throat cut, strangle?; Father:
Zeb Stinnett.
Perpetrator: Lisa Montgomery (36), custody dispute with ex.
C-Section: kitchen knife.
Child: girl, Victoria Jo Stinnett, survived.
Book: Diane Fanning, Baby Be Mine, Aug. 2007.
15) 2005 – Brady – Attempted murder.
Date of Crime: Feb. 13, 2005; Fort Mitchell, Kentucky.
Mother: Sarah Brady (26), survived.
Perpetrator: Katie Smith (22), killed by victim; previous
false sexual abuse accusation sent her father to prison; conviction overturned
on Mar. 31, 2006.
Preparation: Faked pregnancy.
C-Section: Escaped before incision; preparation: surgical
gloves, cutting instruments, medical gauze, homemade umbilical clamp.
Child: McKaila Grace, survived, born on February 16, 2005.
Book: Sarah Brady, Patrick Crowley & Eric Deters, Saving
Grace: The True Story of a Mother-to-be, a Deranged Attacker, and an Unborn
Child, Nov. 10, 2006.
TV: Oprah, “Headline-Making Survivors,” 2006.
16) 2005 – Oskin –
Attempted Murder.
Date of Crime: Oct. 12, 2005; Pattonville, Pennsylvania.
Mother: Valerie Oskin (30), struck in head by baseball bat
& tire iron, sliced; rescued by Adam (17) & Andrew (his father) Silvis;
survived (barely) through surgery; permanently diminished sense of taste &
smell
Perpetrator: Peggy Jo Conner (38); sentenced to 22-50 years.
C-Section: Box cutter.
Child: survived: boy, adopted out.
17) 2006 – Tunstall – 5 Murders.
Date of Crime: Sep. 15, 2006 (first body found) Sep. 21; East
St. Louis, Missouri.
Mother: Jinella Tunstall (23); bludgeoned with blunt object,
bled to death.
Other victims: 3 children drowned: DeMond Tunstall (7), Ivan
Tunstall-Collins, (2 ½), and Jinella Tunstall (1 ½); bodies found in washer
& dryer.
Perpetrator: Tiffany Hall (24).
C-Section: Scissors.
Child: (7 mo) died.
18) 2007 – Howard – Attempted murder (abandoned).
Date of Crime: July 31, 2007; Clinton, Missouri.
Mother: Amanda Howard (18), survived; tied up; attempt to
break neck by twisting head violently.
Perpetrators: Lauren M. Gash (19), Alisa D. Betts (17);
Myspace contact.
Preparation: False birth certificate found.
C-Section: escaped before incision; prepared: scissors,
x-acto knife.
Child: boy, Ethan Damon Howard, survived, born Aug. 1.
19) 2008 – Camacho Gomez – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: June 27, 2008, Pasco, Washington.
Mother: Araceli Camacho Gomez (27), stabbed multiple times
in the chest.
Perpetrator: Phiengchai Sisouvanh Synhavong (23); feigned
insanity to avoid trial.
Preparation: hands and feet bound by yarn.
C-Section: box cutter.
Child: boy, Salvador Gomez, critical condition, survived.
20) 2008 – Johnson – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: July 17, 2008, Wilkinsberg, Pennsylvania.
Mother: Kia Johnson (19), stabbed.
Perpetrator: Andrea Curry-Demus (38).
Preparation: bound with duct tape at the wrists and ankles,
and there were also layers of duct tape and plastic covering much of her head.
C-Section: “A very sharp instrument” was used to cut open
her belly.”
Child: boy, Terrell, survived.
21) 2009 – Snively –
2 Murders.
Date of Crime: June 5, 2009, Hillsboro, Ore.
Mother: Heather Snively (21), murdered, body stuffed in a
crawlspace beneath Roberts's kitchen.
Perpetrator: Korena Elaine Roberts (27), met through
Craigslist.com.
C-Section: (not described).
Child: boy, taken by Roberts to hospital, died.
22) 2009 – Haynes – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: July 23, 2009, Worcester, Mass.
Mother: Darlene Haynes (23); murdered, last seen alive, Jul
23; mother of 3 other chn, 5, 3, 18 mo; Body found Monday, decomposing, Jul 27;
Died from fractured skull.
Perpetrators: Julie Corey (35), (Alex Dion vindicated);
Plymouth, NH, place of arrest, Wednesday Jul 29
Preparation: faked pregnancy.
C-Section: (not described).
Child: girl, 4 lbs., alive, Sheila Marie.
23) 2009 – Adams – 1 Murder.
Date of Crime: Dec. 1, 2009, Suitland, Maryland.
Mother: Teka Adams (29), homeless, kidnapped on Dec. 1 &
bound; survived.
Perpetrator: Veronica Deramous (40), New Hampshire/Maryland;
assisted by 17-y-o son.
C-section: cut: box cutters and knives; “abdomen was cut and
her intestines, stomach and placenta were exposed,” escaped before baby was
removed. Escaped after 4 days.
Child: girl, survived, Miracle Sky.
24) 2011 – Stice – 1 Murder.
Date of crime: April 14, 2011, Oakland, Kentucky.
Mother: Jamie Stice, 21; father ex-boyfriend James Reynolds.
Perpetrator: Kathy Michelle Coy, 33; shocked her with a stun gun, slit her wrists.
Preparation: stole sonogram photo; planned crime for months;
used Facebook.
C-section: drywall knife.
Child: boy, Isiah, survived.
25) 2011 – Ramirez-Cruz – 2 Murders.
Date of crime: Oct. 6, 2011, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Mother: Maritza Ramirez-Cruz, 23, Christian Mercado, husband.
Perpetrator: Annette Morales-Rodriguez, 33; beat victim with
baseball bat, strangled her, smothered her with plastic bag.
C-section: x-acto knife.
Child: boy, Omar, died.
26) 2015 – Wilkins – 1 Murder.
Date of crime: Mar. 15, 2015, Longmont, Colorado.
Mother: Michelle Wilkins, 26, stabbed in neck with broken glass, survived
Perpetrator: Dynel Catrece Lane, 34.
C-section: knife with 3-inch blade.
Child: girl (34 weeks maturity, named Aurora), died.
27) 2015 – Sutton – 1 Murder
26) 2015 – Wilkins – 1 Murder.
Date of crime: Mar. 15, 2015, Longmont, Colorado.
Mother: Michelle Wilkins, 26, stabbed in neck with broken glass, survived
Perpetrator: Dynel Catrece Lane, 34.
C-section: knife with 3-inch blade.
Child: girl (34 weeks maturity, named Aurora), died.
27) 2015 – Sutton – 1 Murder
Date of crime: Nov. 22, 2015, The Bronx, New York, N. Y.
Mother: Angelikque Sutton, 22, died.
Perpetrator: Ashleigh Wade, 22.
C-section: knife.
Child: Genesis, girl, 8 ½ mo., survived.
28) 2019 – Ochoa-Lopez – 2 Murders.
28) 2019 – Ochoa-Lopez – 2 Murders.
Date
of crime: Apr. 23. 2019, Chicago, Illinois.
Mother:
Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, 24, died.
Perpetrator:
Carisa Figueroa, 44; accomplices: Desiree Figueroa, 24; Peter Bubak, 40.
C-section: butcher knife.
Child:
boy, 9 mo., “zero brain activity.”
29) 2020 – Mafra – 1 Murder
Date of Crime: Aug. 27, 2020; Santa Catarina, Brazil.
Mother: Flavia Godinho Mafra (24); struck with brick.
Perpetrator Rozalba Grimm (26), old school-friend.
C-Section: box-cutter.
Child: Cecilia (36 wks.), survived.
30) 2020 – Simmons-Hancock – 2 Murders
Date of Crime: Oct. 9, 2020; New Boston, Texas
Mother: Reagan Simmons-Hancock (21 or 22)
Perpetrator: Taylor Parker (27), aka Taylor Morton and
Taylor Wacasey (arrested in Oklahoma)
C-Section: details unavailable.
Child: Braxlynn Sage Hancock (7 ½ months), died.
***
Out of the 30 individual cases:
21 mothers
died.
10 newborns
died.
2 involved
the murder of other children (5 children total).
4 cases
involved accomplices.
***
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***
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***
NOTE: The 1974 Sweeney case does not appear on most lists of
cesarean kidnappers. The editor first placed this case online, naming it as the
earliest known case of this type in 2009.
***
Updated: July 13, 2021
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[7623-7/13/21]
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