Jessica, the girl who was kidnapped and tortured for five days for a witchcraft debt

The murder of little Jessica, three years old, has shaken Portugalstunned by the revelations of an investigation that indicates that the girl was the victim of kidnapping and ill-treatment for a debt of 400 euros due to “witchcraft services”.

The girl was admitted this week to a hospital in Setubal -about 50 kilometers from Lisbon- with cardiac arrest in serious condition and the doctors were unable to save her.

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The autopsy revealed signs of abuse -with visible bruising all over the body and hair pulled out– Y Police arrested three people today: a 50-year-old woman posing as a nursemaid, her 52-year-old husband, and their 27-year-old daughter.

The couple is accused of qualified homicide and their daughter of denial of help for not reporting or notifying the emergency room.

The first investigations, according to Correio da Manha, reveal Jessica’s mother would have gone to the false nursemaid, Ana Cristina, to do a “witchcraft job” and maintain her relationship with the girl’s stepfather.

The debt, of 400 euros, would be behind the kidnapping of the girl, held by her captors for five days and beaten into a state of agony.

The police are also investigating the mother of the little girl who, according to local media, said during the kidnapping that she was in a vacation camp to prevent social services from taking custody of her.

Jessica’s situation had already been investigated by the Commission for the Protection of Children and Young People lusa that, however, closed the case at the beginning of June, considering that the girl was protected within the family.

Today, lawyers, officials and experts reflect on Portugal about the chain errors that ended with the death of Jessica.

“It’s something that shocks everyone” and requires “investigating the failures in the system so that they can be corrected,” admitted today the Minister of the Presidency, Mariana Vieira da Silva, number two of the Portuguese Government.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.