In the latest tragic turn in the Marlen Ochoa-Lopez case, where a pregnant Chicago teenager was murdered and had her child cut from her womb, her son passed away on Friday.
The child, Yovanny Jadiel Lopez, was in grave condition after the murder of his mother and was being treated in intensive care until his death, as reported by CNN.
“He suffered irrevocable brain damage,” said family spokeswoman Julie Contreras.
“There’s no medicine, there’s no pill that can fix that. Only a miracle.”
This was reinforced by the boy’s father, Yovani Lopez, and his lawyer Frank Avila, who said: “He can’t breathe on his own. He can’t eat on his own. There’s tubes down his throat.”
The young boy had sustained brain injuries during his mother’s murder. Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, 19, was lured to her death with the promise of free baby clothing and a stroller.
Ochoa-Lopez had established contact with her alleged murderer, Clarisa Figueroa, 46, in an expectant mothers group on Facebook. Ms Figueroa had given her baby clothing in the past. However, Ms Figueroa allegedly had a much more sinister plot in establishing a relationship with Ochoa-Lopez.
Prosecutors say that, with the help of her daughter Desiree, 24, Ms Figueroa had planned to murder Ms Ochoa-Lopez to steal her unborn child. Ms Figueroa had allegedly planned to raise the child as her own after the loss of her adult son.
After allegedly cutting the child from Ms Ochoa-Lopez’s womb, Ms Figueroa called 911 and claimed she had just delivered a baby who was not breathing.
The child and Ms Figueroa were taken to hospital, although there was no medical indication that the 46-year-old had been pregnant. While in hospital, DNA tests proved that the young boy was the son of Yovanny Jadiel Lopez and had no relation to Ms Figueroa.
Ms Ochoa-Lopez's body was eventually found by investigators in a trash can on Ms Figueroa’s property, three weeks after she was reported missing. Authorities also found burned clothing, the cable used to strangle the teen, and blood on the floor of the home.
Clarisa and Desiree Figueroa have been indicted on murder charges. Piotr Bobak, Clarisa Figueroa’s boyfriend, has been indicted on charges of concealment of a homicide.
