The story of the “Niño del terror”, the young serial killer who hid in Colombia

Juan Fernando Hermosa was 15 years old when he committed his first murder and 20 when his body was found in a situation similar to that of his first victim.

Beautifull was born on February 28, 1976 in Shushufindi Canton, Ecuadorand in conditions that are still not clear, he was adopted by Rafael Hermosa and Zoila Suárez, who took him to live in Quito, details the newspaper “Clarín”.

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It was in a popular neighborhood of the capital that the young man, under the care of his mother who suffered from deafness and arthritis, He began to create a gang made up of ten young people in which he played the role of leader.

The gang at that time used to hang around some bars, clubs and arcades located near the area of Guambra Bridge and was accused of minor crimes, according to what they indicate.

However, later Hermosa would also be known as the ‘Niño del terror’ or the youngest serial killer in Ecuador.

his first victim

On November 22, 1991, Hermosa left a nightclub with some of her fellow gang members, when they took a San Remo taxi and told the driver to take them north of the city.

However, the journey never ended Hermosa pulled out a 9-millimeter pistol and shot the driver in the head. He and some members of his gang then dumped the body in the south of the city, where police found it the next morning. That night began a massacre that terrorized the capital of Ecuador.

The ‘Horror Boy’

Hermosa’s next victim came a week after the taxi driver’s murder. However, in this case she was a person he already knew, as he had been cutting her hair for several years.

It was about Charlie, who owned a hair salon and was a member of the LGBTQ+ community, which is relevant since people like him would become one of Hermosa’s main targets.

Apparently, the young man arrived as he had done before to get a haircut, only this time he was accompanied by some friends who were consuming alcohol.

Ecuadorian serial killer: Juan Fernando Hermosa at the age of 16 killed 22 people in Quito in the early 90’s pic.twitter.com/eb96yke1gC

– Jairo Morán (@jmorqui) Oct. 15, 2014

From what the police were able to gather from the case, Charlie invited them to continue drinking at his house and there an argument broke out that escalated and ended with Hermosa shooting him five times and killing him.

For the next four months, Hermosa committed at least 15 more crimes and targeted two very specific populations: taxi drivers and people from the LGBTQ+ community, causing panic in the city.

According to official police records, there were 23 victims of the young man, who was only 15 years old at the time. However, the real numbers are feared to be much higher.

The reason for the fixation by these two populations was never clear to the researchers, in addition to being a case of homophobia.

The sentence did not last long

Hermosa was tracked down by the authorities because, apparently, one of his gang mates betrayed him after pressure to be detained and told them where the minor’s home was located.

Apparently, an operation was mounted to arrest the young man and on January 9, 1992, at dawn, they entered his house through a skylight in order to take him into custody. Nevertheless, Hermosa was not going to give herself up easily and started shooting towards the agents, who reacted the same way.

In the middle of the confrontation, Zoila Suárez, who was also in the house, died from the impact of 11 bullets.

Juan Fernando Hermosa Suarez (1976 – 1996) was an Ecuadorian serial killer, guilty of the death of at least 15 people between November 1991 and January 1992 in Quito. Although he was arrested in 1992, questions about his life, crimes and death continue. pic.twitter.com/5x1TYKoopC

— David (@skhunt92) November 18, 2020

Despite Beautifull He fought not to turn himself in, the police managed to arrest him and took him to the García Moreno prison. “I want to make it clear that my name is Juan Fernando Hermosa Suárez and that on February 28 I will be 16 years old.”, were the first words of the young man when he had to testify.

In addition, he added that his intention had never been to kill people, but that he saw no other alternative because his victims responded aggressively: “A taxi driver tried to hit me with a tire iron, so I was forced to shoot too”the young man apologized.

Nevertheless, Beautifull he received the maximum sentence that could be given to a minor and was forced to serve four years in prison. Not even two years passed before the young man returned to his criminal acts and even managed to escape from prison.

THE CHILD OF TERROR: Juan Fernando Hermosa, Confessed his Crimes. 1992.
???? Living Reality. pic.twitter.com/AOYbmra84K

— Cheo ???????? (@CheoGomez) August 29, 2018

The escape and the return to prison

Hermosa fled prison with a gun in hand, wounded behind him, a murdered guard, and a new gang behind him.

Even managed to reach Colombia, settled in Bogotá and began to live off the jewelry he stole in the country’s capital. However, his face was already known to the Colombian authorities, so it didn’t take long before they found him and sent him back to prison.

This time, Hermosa served his sentence until 1996 and came out as a free man, but his peace did not last long.

The murderer was murdered

The same day he turned 20, his body was found by the authorities in the Aguarico River, near Nueva Loja, Ecuador, where he had gone to live with his father after leaving prison.

Apparently, Hermosa had been tortured in such a way that his face was impossible to recognize for the officers who found him.who realized that it was him due to the documents that the body carried with it.

Despite the fact that at some point the authorities said that five people had killed Hermosa, her death remains a great mystery.

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.