Woman admits to luring, killing pregnant friend to steal baby
A court has sentenced a young woman to almost 57 years in prison for killing a pregnant woman so she could steal her unborn baby by cutting it from her womb.
The court in the town of Tijucas, in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, sentenced Rozalba Maria Grime, 27, to 56 years and 10 months in prison on Wednesday.
The trial, which lasted 15 hours, resulted in Grime being found guilty of aggravated murder, attempted murder of a baby, concealment of a corpse, obstruction of justice, abduction of a minor and denying the rights of a newborn.
The crime took place in the town of Canelinha on August 27 last year, and Grime has been in custody since then.
During the trial by jury, she told the court how she had planned the crime and had studied how to remove the unborn child from the mother's womb.
She also said she had researched how to simulate the symptoms of pregnancy and childbirth.
Grime admitted to luring the victim to an abandoned pottery, where there were bricks to strike her on the head with.
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According to investigators, teacher Flavia Godinho Mafra, 24, who was 36-weeks-pregnant, died after being struck several times on the head with a brick.
Her belly was cut with a utility knife and her unborn baby was removed from her womb before her body was hidden in a kiln. She died of a haemorrhage, according to the post-mortem.
The state prosecutor said Mafra and Grime knew each other.
Following the crime, Grime went with her partner, who believed at the time she had been pregnant and had just given birth, to a hospital in Canelinha.
There, she told staff she had just given birth on a thoroughfare.
However, the hospital staff were suspicious of the woman's account and called the police.
Her partner was initially suspected of involvement in the crime. However, he was released from custody on October 7 last year and acquitted on July 27 this year.
The prosecutor at the time concluded that he genuinely thought his partner had been pregnant.
The woman's defence may appeal the sentence.
Australscope
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