2-Year-Old Girl Dies in Villa Gesell, Investigation Underway: Her Mother Had Been Acquitted in the Deaths of Two Other Daughters

The Justice system is investigating the death of a 2-year-old girl that occurred in Villa Gesell, after the minor was brought to the Arturo Illia Municipal Hospital without vital signs. The case has generated significant impact due to the judicial history of her mother, who faced trial years ago for the death of two of her other daughters and was ultimately acquitted.

Now, investigators are awaiting the results of the autopsy and forensic examinations to accurately determine what caused the girl's death and whether there was any criminal responsibility.

According to reports, the girl was urgently transferred to the local hospital, where medical staff performed resuscitation maneuvers for approximately 40 minutes, but were unable to reverse the situation.

The mother, 44 years old, stated to the professionals that the girl had choked while drinking from a bottle.

After the death was confirmed, the health center notified the Police, and an investigation was initiated for determining the causes of death, which is now in the hands of prosecutor Juan Pablo Calderón, head of the Functional Instruction Unit No. 4 of Pinamar.

Forensic studies will be crucial in establishing the origin of the respiratory crisis and whether there was any behavior that could have influenced the outcome.

The investigation has revived a case that shocked Mar del Plata years ago. In 2018, the woman was acquitted in the trial for the death of Yazmín, an 11-month-old baby who died in 2016.

During that case, both she and her partner were fugitives for several days before voluntarily surrendering. They were both detained for nearly two years and always maintained their innocence.

In that same judicial process, the death of another daughter of the woman, a six-month-old baby who died in 2013, was also analyzed.

Judges Juan Manuel Sueyro, Mariana Irianni, and Fabián Riquert evaluated the medical evidence and concluded that there were no traumatic injuries or signs of sexual abuse. In both cases, the deaths were attributed to respiratory complications.

Ultimately, the court decided to acquit the accused as it considered there was insufficient evidence to demonstrate that the deaths were the result of mistreatment or abuse.

In parallel to the criminal process, the Family Justice intervened in the family group. As part of those actions, several of the woman's children were separated from their family environment and placed in protective homes or put up for adoption through various judicial resolutions.

After her acquittal, the woman settled in Villa Gesell, formed a new relationship, and had two more children, including the girl who died this week.

Following the announcement of the new investigation, statements related to the previous judicial actions also resurfaced. Lawyer Erika Agnes Hooft Suárez, who intervened for years in family cases related to the woman's children, stated that the Maternal and Child Hospital of Mar del Plata had diagnosed her with Munchausen syndrome.

"This mother’s last diagnosis was a disease called Munchausen," the lawyer stated during the interview.

For her part, criminal profiler Constanza Lamarque explained that Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a disorder in which the caregiver "invent symptoms that the child does not have, also exaggerates them, manipulates studies, or administers substances to induce illnesses."

The lawyer noted that this diagnosis had been one of the elements analyzed during the judicial interventions initiated between 2012 and 2013. Additionally, she stated that the repeated hospitalizations of the woman's children prompted numerous alerts from healthcare personnel.

"People have marched, the hospital director went to speak with the Justice, asking for protection because they kept being treated. One child would come in, leave, and two or three days later another would come back in," she stated.

Meanwhile, the case regarding the girl's death remains under investigation. Judicial authorities are awaiting the results of the autopsy and complementary examinations before determining whether there are elements that allow for advancing towards another criminal qualification or if the death was solely due to natural or accidental causes.