Juana Barraza: The Little Old Lady Killer

The Backroom

Juana Barraza's youth was everything but normal. Her mother was an alcoholic prostitute, who pimped Juana out when she was 12 years old, in exchange for three beers. When Juana was old enough she left the small Mexican town of Hidalgo for Mexico City. She worked many odd jobs and had multiple failed marriage; having four children from them. She toured central Mexico as a masked wrestler named La Dama del Silencio (The Lady of Silence). She began her career as a criminal in 1995, after the birth of her fourth child. Her and her friend would burglarize the homes of elderly people until her friend's boyfriend (who was a corrupt federal officer) forced Juana to pay him 12,000 pesos ($608) in return that she would not be arrested. In 2002, Juana committed her first murder. As her killing spree began to roll, police announced that there was a possible serial killer they named "El Mataviejitas", who was believed to be a homosexual man or transgender woman who was killing elderly people. Juana would wear all white and pretended to be a city council nurse sent to check on her targeted victim. Juana was eventually caught in 2006 and was tried for 30 murders, only being found guilty of 16. Her sentence? A easy 759 years in prison. Regardless, she will be paroled in 2058 at the age of 101.