Post-mortem confirms murder of Nerea, 11: three family members charged in Berazategui
The post-mortem examination of Nerea Geraldine Pereira, found dead in Berazategui, determined that she died from thoracic aortic rupture following a beating. Her mother, grandmother and uncle are the principal suspects.
Post-mortem reveals fatal beating of 11-year-old girl: mother, grandmother and uncle under investigation
The definitive results of the post-mortem examination of Nerea Geraldine Pereira, the 11-year-old girl found dead in her home in Berazategui, confirmed that the child was murdered. According to infobae.com reporting based on judicial sources with access to the case file, the blows she received caused a thoracic aortic rupture, secondary cardiac arrest and hypovolaemic shock. The judiciary is pointing to three family members with whom the child lived.
Multiple injuries and possible prior sexual abuse
The case file is handled by Functional Investigation Unit No. 3, headed by prosecutor Gabriela Mateos. Preliminary forensic studies had already detected injuries consistent with blows to different areas of the back, signs of internal bleeding and injuries consistent with possible historical sexual abuse.
"Based on the post-mortem report, a homicide is being investigated, currently in the evidence-gathering stage," said a judicial source consulted by infobae.com.
Based on those findings, prosecutor Mateos requested the detention of the victim's mother, two uncles and the maternal grandmother. One of them was released for lack of evidence, so three suspects are currently detained.
The three accused
The suspects identified are Rocío Aldana Pereira, 28 years old, Nerea's mother; Mónica Villalba, 53 years old, maternal grandmother; and Carlos Ezequiel Pereira, 25 years old, maternal uncle. All three lived in the same house as the child. The prosecutor questioned them, but all three refused to make statements. The specific role of each in the incident remains under investigation.
Discovery of the body and initial account
Nerea's body was found in a foetal position on the floor of a house located on Calle 19 in Berazategui, following a 911 call that alerted authorities to the child's death. Upon arrival, police officers were attended to by the grandmother, who claimed the girl had taken her own life using a restraint element placed around her neck and tied to the frame of the bathroom door. According to the family's account, one of them had brought her down and moved her to where the police found her.
Prosecutor Mateos immediately ordered the preservation of the house, identification of possible witnesses and transfer of the remains to the Judicial Morgue for routine post-mortem examination. The case, which was initially investigated as a possible suicide, changed classification as forensic analyses progressed.
A documented situation of neglect
In the course of the investigation, neighbours, police officers who arrived first at the scene and teaching staff provided statements. The statements made it possible to establish that Nerea was suffering from neglect within her own home. "She lacked family support," one of the investigators told infobae.com.
The property where the victim lived contained three separate buildings inhabited by family members, none of whom provided clear explanations of what occurred. The family's inability to account for the facts was one of the factors that weakened the suicide hypothesis.
Searches and seizure of items
The search was carried out by personnel from SDDI Berazategui, with the involvement of the Special Cases Division of the Scientific Police of Buenos Aires Province and the collaboration of CP Berazategui.
During the procedure, 11 mobile phones, a rucksack belonging to the child and various notes considered of interest to the investigation were seized.
Charge reclassified as homicide
With the elements gathered so far, prosecutor Mateos decided to reclassify the case: first as abandonment of a person resulting in death and, finally, as homicide. The post-mortem examination definitively ruled out the suicide hypothesis that had guided the first hours of the investigation. The case remains open.
Source: Google News AR — Buenos Aires