Who Is Clarisa Figueroa? New Details On Woman Who Lured Pregnant Teen To Her Home, Murdered Her And Cut Baby Out
She met the victim on Facebook.
Facebook When a woman is pregnant, it's a time full of anticipation. They just can't wait for that tiny bundle of joy to arrive and transform their lives in a million ways, both big and small. It should also be a time of joy, but unfortunately, it doesn't always turn out that way. When Marlen Ochoa-Lopez discovered she was pregnant, she quickly took to social media to connect with other expecting mothers. But she didn't know that not everyone she encountered online was who they seemed and that some, in fact, had evil intentions not just for her, but for the new life she was about to bring into the world. Who is Clarisa Figueroa?
1. Marlen Ochoa-Lopez
On April 22nd in Chicago, 19-year-old expectant mother Marlen Ochoa-Lopez logged into Facebook and posted a message in the "Help A Sister Out" group for moms where she was a regular participant. She was looking for a stroller, and at nine months pregnant, time was running out for her to get one. Luckily for her, Clarisa Figueroa had one as well as some brand new clothes to pass on. The two women arranged to meet and that should have been that. Unfortunately, it wasn't. When Marlen headed out to meet up with Clarisa she had no idea she was headed towards her death. According to the Chicago police, Clarisa's promises were lies designed to lure Marlen to her home. Once the married teen arrived, she was murdered, and her baby son cut out of her womb. He is now brain dead and on life support.
2. "Help A Sister Out"
The last time Marlen was seen was on April 23rd. Her husband notified police that she was missing the following day — as soon as it was something they could act on legally. Initially, the police were stymied. They had no idea where Marlen could be, but were doing their best to locate the missing woman as well as her car, which she took when she left the house that day. The police did not make the connection to Clarisa until a friend of Marlen's told them about the Facebook conversation the two had. Once they had this information their search switched from local hospitals to focusing in on Clarisa and her home, but initially, without a body it seemed like there wasn't enough to connect the 46-year-old woman to any potential crime involving Marlen.
3. The Body
On May 14th, a truly terrible thing happened: the police investigating Marlen's disappearance found her remains in a trashcan in Clarisa's neighborhood. The murder weapon, a long piece of cable, was also found with her body. It was Marlen's own father who had to go and look at the body to identify it as belonging to his young daughter. The police and the medical examiner were soon able to confirm the ghastly details of what they already suspected: Marlen was strangled to death, and once she was gone, her stomach and womb were cut open in order to remove her child. The baby was not found with Marlen for a reason nearly as unsettling as the details of its mother's death.
4. Why?
The police do not know what Clarisa had in mind for the child once it was stolen from its mother, but Clarisa's own tragic past gives an indication of what she had in mind. Clarisa and her boyfriend, Piotr Bobak, lost their own son in 2017 from natural causes. It could very well be the case that they wanted to raise the stolen infant as their own. Supporting this theory is the GoFundMe account that Piotr started to raise funds for the sick little boy. He shared photos of the infant along with details about his condition, revealing that the child was brain dead and on full life support. He tried to pass the child off as being his own, but once the police began putting together the pieces of this horrific puzzle, they quickly sussed out the truth of the infant's identity.
5. The Arrests
CBS Chicago reports that three arrests have been made in connection with the awful crime. The police arrested Clarisa, her daughter Desiree, and Clarisa's boyfriend Piotr. Desiree was arrested because she confessed to the police that she helped her mother strangle Marlen to death using a long piece of cable. Piotr was arrested on the charge of helping to conceal a crime, based on a 911 call made the day after Marlen's disappearance. A male caller requested an ambulance for a 46-year-old woman who had just delivered an unresponsive baby. That combined with the GoFundMe page Piotr had ready could lead to additional charges surrounding the crime.
Rebecca Jane Stokes is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York with her cats, Batman and Margot. She's an experienced generalist with a passion for lifestyle, geek news, pop culture, and true crime. For more of her work, check out her Tumblr.