Mexico City – Police say a suspect arrested while fleeing from a home where an elderly woman was slain Wednesday matches the profile of a believed serial murderer known as “the Old Lady Killer” – except the suspect is a woman, not a transvestite as authorities previously believed.
The suspect, identified as Juana Barraza, 48, admitted to Wednesday’s killing, but denied involvement in at least seven other similar cases that have occurred since 2003.
Police had spent months questioning, detaining and fingerprinting transvestites in the case because previous witnesses had described the killer as “mannish” in appearance.
But Police Chief Joel Ortega said Barraza, a robust Mexican woman with short, died-reddish-blond hair, has the same characteristics as the police composite profile, “including the mole she has on her face” and her haircut.
“Yes, I did it,” Barraza calmly told reporters outside of the house where she was under police guard. But 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.” Asked if she was the serial killer, Barraza said “No.” When asked how many murders she had committed, she replied, “This is the first.” At least seven elderly women have been strangled or beaten to death in recent years, and police have said those crimes were probably committed by the same person. About 22 other similar killings have happened over the past several years, but it is unclear if they are related.
Ismael Alvarado Ruiz, one of two policemen who detained the suspect, said a neighbor stopped their patrol car and pointed to Barraza, who was running from the house where the murder occurred.
“This person (Barraza) started running, and my partner and I caught her by the arms and took her back to the patrol car,” Alvarado Ruiz said. “We went back to the house, and everything was scattered all around.” The victim, Ana Maria Reyes, 82, died of asphyxiation, Ortega said. She lived in a modest one-story brick house in a working-class neighborhood.
Police said they found in her possession a stethoscope, social benefits papers and a card identifying Barraza as a sort of social worker. Police have long thought the serial killer gained access to victims’ homes by offering to sign them up for pensions or other programs for the elderly.
But Barraza said she had come to the victim’s home to ask for work as a laundress and wasn’t carrying any such documents.
“That’s a lie. I wasn’t carrying the documents they have there,” she said. She did not offer a motive for the killing, but told reporters, “You’ll know why I did it when you read my statement to police.” One of Reyes’ neighbors, 73-year-old Lourdes Medina, said the victim was a neat, 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.” — Eds: Associated Press writer Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.
