CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
One is a female wrestler who allegedly earned the trust of elderly women, then strangled them. The other is a former soldier accused of luring gay men from bars and killing them. Mexico City police had two suspected serial killers in custody Thursday, saying they have solved the capital's infamous "Little Old Lady Killer" case and have broken another string of murders. Authorities said Juana Barraza, 48, was caught fleeing a house Wednesday where an 82-year-old woman had been strangled with a stethoscope. Prosecutors said they have evidence implicating Barraza as the notorious Mataviejitas, or "Little Old Lady Killer," suspected in the slayings of at least 10 elderly women in the past two years. Another suspect, Raul Osiel Marroquin, 29, was arrested Monday in the killings of four gay men in the capital, police said. Both suspects confessed to killing at least some of the victims when they were paraded in front of the media, a tradition in Mexico, a country in which police and prosecutors have faced withering criticism for failing to investigate, let alone solve, most crimes. At a news conference Thursday, Marroquin coldly described killing four gay men. Although there had been some reports of an increase in attacks against gays, the announcement of Marroquin's arrest was the first confirmation of a serial killer targeting gays. Police did not give details about what led to his arrest. "I snuffed out four homosexuals that in some way were affecting society," Marroquin said. He told reporters he would kill again, if given the chance, but would "refine his methods." Police said Marroquin tortured his victims before hanging or choking them and carved a star into the forehead of one man. They also accused him of kidnapping two other gay men, but said he let them go for ransoms of up to $11,500. Unlike Marroquin's case, which was little known until his arrest, news of the "Little Old Lady Killer" grabbed headlines, frightening residents for two years. Police had suspected the killer was a man dressed as a woman and spent months detaining, questioning, and fingerprinting transvestites. Female serial killers are rare in any country, making up only 8% of all serial assassins in the United States. Mexico City attorney general Bernardo Batiz said Thursday that they have enough evidence to pin at least 10 deaths on Barraza, a stocky former professional wrestler. Barraza was arrested Wednesday night as she fled a house in which Ana Maria Reyes, 82, had just been strangled with a stethoscope. Neighbors called police. She told police and reporters she did kill Reyes but not the others. "Yes, I did it," she said, smiling at the television cameras as she was being taken away by police. She quickly added: "Just because I'm going to pay for it, that doesn't mean they're going to hang all the crimes on me." But Batiz told reporters that Barraza's fingerprints match those at the scene of 10 homicides as well as one attempted murder. He also said Barraza has made incriminating statements in connection with four of the 10 killings, including that of Reyes. Barraza also resembles police composite drawings and a sculptured rendering of the suspected serial killer based on descriptions by witnesses, even including a similar haircut and facial mole. "My partner and I caught her by the arms and took her back to the patrol car," officer Ismael Alvarado Ruiz said of the arrest. "We went back to the house, and everything was scattered all around." Police said Barraza was carrying a bag with a stethoscope, pension forms, and a card identifying her as a social worker. Police have long believed the killer gained access to victims' homes by offering to sign them up for pensions or other social programs. But Barraza said she went to the victim's home seeking work doing laundry. "That's a lie. I wasn't carrying the documents they have there," she said. She did not offer a motive but told reporters, "You'll know why I did it when you read my statement to police." One of Reyes's neighbors, 73-year-old Lourdes Medina, remembered the victim as a tidy, hardworking woman. "This is very sad. It's not fair," Medina said. "This could have happened to me. I'm scared to walk on the street." (AP)
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Pride
Yahoo FeedIndulge in luxury and sensuality with The Pride Store’s Taurus gift guide
April 22 2024 11:46 AM
The gay man leading the Earth Day Initiative offers hope for the future
April 22 2024 9:00 AM
Pattie Gonia takes drag and fierceness to Capitol Hill to voice environmental concerns
April 22 2024 8:23 AM
Jodie Foster leaves her mark in cement at L.A.'s Chinese Theatre
April 22 2024 7:55 AM
Climate change has a bigger impact on LGBTQ+ couples than straight couples. Here's how
April 22 2024 7:42 AM
Iraq postpones vote on bill punishing gay sex with death
April 20 2024 1:31 PM
Russian poetry contest bans entries from transgender poets
April 20 2024 1:25 PM
Here's who won 'RuPaul's Drag Race' season 16
April 20 2024 1:01 PM
The Tip Off: A beginners guide to the WNBA
April 20 2024 11:06 AM
John Fetterman challenges Pa. school board’s cancellation of talk by gay actor
April 19 2024 2:39 PM
New study finds inadequate response to mpox outbreak
April 19 2024 2:06 PM
Fighting back against MAGA’s attacks on equality
April 19 2024 1:00 PM
Just one Christian Nationalist group is behind Idaho's bans on trans care and abortion
April 19 2024 11:57 AM
Linda Perry opens up in new documentary, premiering in June at Tribeca Festival
April 19 2024 11:43 AM