1 week ago
Brazilian Woman Jailed After Pretending To Be Autistic Child
A 37-year-old woman in Brazil pretended to be a 12-year-old autistic girl.
She used the name Gabriele and moved in with a family that wanted to help her.
She acted like a young child by carrying a doll and using a pacifier and baby bottle.
The family paid for her living costs for more than a year.
An aunt became suspicious and searched for information about her.
The search found reports of a similar situation involving the woman before.
A court decided that she had knowingly created a false identity.
Her lawyer said she had lived on the streets and used this behavior to survive.
The court still found her responsible and gave her a prison sentence.
Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira, 37, was convicted in Brazil of fraud and false identity.
She lived with a religious foster family for 14 months while posing as a vulnerable autistic 12-year-old named Gabriele.
To support the deception, she reportedly used a doll, pacifier, baby bottle and childlike voice.
The family’s aunt became suspicious after finding reports of a similar case involving Oliveira in Rio de Janeiro.
A court rejected her mental-illness defense and sentenced her to prison and detention, while her lawyer said she had survived through invented identities.
- Who
- Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira, a 37-year-old Brazilian woman, and the religious foster family she deceived.
- What
- Oliveira was convicted of fraud and false identity after pretending to be an autistic 12-year-old child.
- Where
- Joinville, Santa Catarina, Brazil; a previous case involved Rio de Janeiro.
- When
- She lived with the family for 14 months; the earlier similar case was reported as occurring three years before the discovery.
- Why
- According to her lawyer, inventing identities was how Oliveira survived, while the court found that she acted deliberately and consciously.
Court’s Position
Defense’s Position
Criminal responsibility
Court’s Position
The court rejected the claim that mental illness made Oliveira not criminally responsible, ruling that she acted deliberately and consciously.
Defense’s Position
Her lawyer argued that she had been vulnerable for more than 20 years and that inventing an identity was how she survived.
Fraud allegations
Court’s Position
Oliveira was convicted of fraud and false identity and received a custodial sentence.
Defense’s Position
Her lawyer said there was no allegation that she gained financial advantage, committed robbery or committed theft, arguing that the elements of fraud had not been established.
Pattern of deception
Court’s Position
Authorities discovered reports of a similar scam involving Oliveira in Rio de Janeiro, supporting the case against her.
Defense’s Position
The defense acknowledged that she invented an identity but emphasized her history of homelessness and vulnerability.
Key facts
- Defendant
- Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira
- Age
- 37
- False identity
- Gabriele, described as a severely autistic 12-year-old girl
- Length of stay
- 14 months with the religious couple
- Charges
- Fraud and false identity
- Sentence
- One year, six months and 10 days in prison, plus four months and 18 days of detention
- Discovery
- The family’s aunt found reports of a similar case in Rio de Janeiro
Quotes
Viviane Henriques
Director of a social project and a previous victim of Oliveira's scam
“People find it absurd to believe. But, personally, she looked like a teenager, always wearing a coat and hood. She claimed to have autism and spoke in a very childlike way. We were heartbroken.”
NDTV
“She admits that she invented an identity. It was the way she found to survive. But she has been a vulnerable person for more than 20 years.”
NDTV
Sources
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