Expectant Mom, 19, Was Lured On Social Media

CHICAGO — The murder of 19-year-old Marlen Ochoa-Lopez has made international headlines and shaken parents around the world who depend on moms groups for support, resources and a sense of connection. The body of Ochoa-Lopez, a married mother who was nine months pregnant with her second child, was discovered Tuesday in a trash bin in the backyard of a home on Chicago's Southwest Side, police said.

Evidence shows Ochoa-Lopez was lured through Facebook and strangled to death — her baby taken from her womb, according to authorities. The way the baby was removed left him in a coma with brain damage, the teen's family said, and the infant remained on life support as of Thursday evening.

• Mother, Daughter Killed Pregnant Woman, Took Baby From Womb: Cops
• Fetal Abduction A Rare But Horrific Crime

Clarisa Figueroa, 46, and her daughter Desiree Figueroa, 24, have been charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery against a child, Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said. The daughter confessed to helping her mother kill Ochoa-Lopez, according to police. The mother's boyfriend, Piotr Bobak, 40, is charged with concealing a homicidal death, police said. All three appeared in court Friday and were ordered held without bond.

"Words really cannot express how disgusting and thoroughly disturbing these allegations are," Johnson said. "I'd like to offer my sincere condolences and prayers to Marlen's family, who instead of celebrating the arrival of a new life into their family are now mourning Marlen's loss."

At a press conference Thursday, Chicago police outlined a timeline of the case:

• April 23 – Ochoa-Lopez was last seen in the city's Pilsen neighborhood leaving Latino Youth High School
• April 24 – Ochoa-Lopez's husband reports her missing
• April 25 – Her husband comes into the Area South police station to begin helping detectives with the case
• April 25 to May 7 – Detectives work with the missing teen's family and friends with the hope of finding her, as well as her vehicle. A search also begins for her car. Detectives visit area hospitals to determine whether she delivered her baby at one of them
• May 7 – The case takes a turn after a friend tips the Chicago Police Department off to Ochoa-Lopez's activity on the now-deleted "Help A Sister Out" Facebook group. Police learn that Ochoa-Lopez had arranged to pick up a double stroller and baby clothes from Clarisa Figueroa at her home in the 4100 block of West 77th Place. Figueroa denies Ochoa-Lopez came to her home the day she went missing; however, Figueroa confirms she knew the missing mother and had previously met her, police said. Detectives also find Ochoa-Lopez's car near the 46-year-old's home, and determine that Figueroa's daughter gave an "extremely odd story" about her mother delivering a baby, police said.
• May 8 – Police obtain DNA from Clarisa Figueroa. After working with the Illinois State Police crime lab, detectives discover that the 46-year-old is not the baby's mother, police said.
• May 14 – Detectives execute a search warrant at the 77th Place home and the four residents are brought in for interviews. Police also find a trash can — somewhat hidden on the premises — that contains Ochoa-Lopez's body, as well as a coaxial cable police say was used to strangle her. Blood is also found on the floors of the home, and bleach and other cleaning products have clearly been used to try to get rid of the evidence, according to authorities.
• May 15 – In the early morning hours, police obtain a confession from Clarisa Figueroa's daughter through a "skillful interrogation," police said. Desiree Figueroa admits to helping her mother strangle Marlen, according to police.

“The defendants also were not that wise," said Chicago Police Deputy Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan. "I mean, the body's in a garbage can on the premises with the murder weapon inside."

Ochoa-Lopez's friends and family members shared with Patch Facebook posts in which Clarisa Figueroa claimed she was pregnant and due at the same time as the 19-year-old was. The 46-year-old, whose adult son died two years ago from natural causes, apparently planned to take the child and raise him as her own, police have said.

Also shared were Facebook exchanges reportedly between Ochoa-Lopez and Figueroa in which the older woman offered to give the expectant mother some baby items.

Figueroa apparently posted a GoFundMe page for the baby, according to screenshots provided by Ochoa-Lopez's friend, Valentina Saenz; however, the page has since been taken down. The fundraiser sought $9,000, and included a picture of a newborn baby on life support.

The same day Ochoa-Lopez went missing, neighbors said Clarisa Figueroa came out of the West 77th home screaming and holding a newborn baby, saying that the baby boy was her own and that he wasn't breathing. Police later confirmed that she tried to claim Ochoa-Lopez's baby as her own.

Paramedics from the Chicago Fire Department were called to the home for a newborn with "CPR in progress," and the baby was in critical condition, authorities said.

Ochoa-Lopez's family had been searching for her since the day she disappeared. Earlier in the investigation, the family hoped a newborn baby brought to a Chicago fire station could be hers, but the child was identified as another teen's baby. The family even hired a private detective to help speed up the investigation.

Police said DNA samples from the baby matched Ochoa-Lopez's. The family has been visiting the baby at the hospital, and the father has named the boy Yovani Yadiel Lopez.

Ochoa-Lopez's husband, Yovani Lopez, 20, spoke with reporters Thursday outside the Cook County medical examiner's office.

"I have a lot of faith that the baby's going to live," he said. "God is going to give me that miracle."

He said his 3-year-old son Joshua keeps asking where his mother is.

"I can't explain what happened because he's still a kid, but I try to make him happy," Lopez said.

Ochoa-Lopez's father, Arnulfo Ochoa, said his daughter should have been found sooner and Supt. Johnson said he understands the family's frustration and anger.

"All of us here are parents, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters. So it doesn't escape us the emotional drain that something like this takes on people," Johnson said. "What I can tell you is this: our detectives are doing the best they can. Often in very trying situations. It's not always the way people want it to be done, that's just the reality of the world we live in."

This Saturday, the Cook County medical examiner's office is hosting the third annual Cook County Missing Persons Day to connect those who have long-term missing loved ones with resources and experts. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the county office, 2121 West Harrison St.

"Our goal is to assist families in locating their loved ones by being a centralized resource for those searching for missing relatives and friends," said Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Ponni Arunkumar.

Those whose friends and family have been missing more than one month will be able to submit DNA samples, medical records, pictures and other records to aid in the search. Emotional support services will also be available for the families.

Shannon Antinori contributed to this report.