News

By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman

SÃO PAULO, Brazil, March 27, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Mariana Almeida Andrade, a sixteen-year-old resident of São Paulo, lost her life for refusing to abort her unborn child, according to local police.

After finding the teenage girl strangled to death in a vacant lot at a petrochemical plant in the São Miguel Paulista area, police interviewed her ex-boyfriend, who reportedly confessed that he killed her for refusing to have an abortion.  Almeida Andrade was three months pregnant at the time. 

According to the police, her 17-year-old ex-boyfriend, who remains unnamed in media accounts, said he did not want the baby because he had a new girlfriend.  When Almeida Andrade refused to agree to abort the child, he strangled her to death.

“He confessed to the crime in the presence of his parents.  He had a relationship with the girl and also with another girlfriend,” said Marcos Carneiro of the police department’s homicide division. “She was pregnant and he didn’t want the child.  He wanted her to have an abortion.  During the argument, he said he lost his head.”

An autopsy is being conducted to determine if Almeida Andrade was truly pregnant, and to confirm that she died by strangulation.

Due to the fact that he is a minor, Almeida Andrade’s ex-boyfriend has been turned over to the custody Fundação CASA, which handles detention and supervision of criminals 21 years old and younger.

Abortion is illegal in Brazil except for cases of rape.