Baby Cut from Slain Mom's Womb Opened His Eyes for the First Time

The newborn baby who was ripped-off from his mother’s womb after she was murdered in cold blood, finally opened his eyes to meet his grief-stricken father, Yovany Lopez. The family is praying for a miracle since doctors are not giving them much hope on the baby’s recovery.

Marlen Ochoa Lopez, a 19-year-old pregnant woman, was strangled to death on April 23 before her murderer, identified as Clarissa Figueroa, forcefully removed her baby from her womb.

As the newborn struggled to breathe, Figueroa took him to a hospital, where she lied, stating she had given birth at home but needed help because the baby was turning blue.

Although he showed no brain activity, the boy was hooked up on life support, while his mother’s body laid on a garbage bin at Figueroa’s house and Clarisa pretended to be his mother.

It was three weeks later that police finally found Marlen’s remains, and that a DNA test proved the baby in the ICU at the Advocate Christ Medical Center, in Chicago, was actually Yovany Lopez and Marlen’s son.

Clarisa and her daughter Desiree, who helped in the strangulation, were charged with first-degree murder and battery of a child last week. Clarisa’s boyfriend, Piotr Bobak, was charged with concealing the death of a person and concealing a homicidal death.

FIGHTING FOR HIS LIFE

As Yovany Lopez dealt with the pain of losing his wife, he stepped in to care for his newborn son, with the help of his and Marlen’s family.

A Facebook post made a few days ago by Cecilia García— a student pastor who is assisting the Ochoa-Lopez family— shows baby Yadiel in his father’s arms. To the surprise of many the newborn, who has been in life-support through the past weeks with no brain activity, opened his eyes for the first time.

"Baby Yadiel and dad, he opened his eyes for us, we are praying for a miracle,” García wrote.

"We were just praying and praying, and he opened his eyes, and his dad said, "Oh my God, he opened his eyes!'" García also told CNN. "We've been blessed, although this is a really bad tragedy, they're such a loving and humble family, and it's just so wrong what happened to them."

According to Emma Lozano, a spokesman for the family, the baby can’t breathe on his own and can’t swallow essential functions.

“Those conversations of whether he can be taken off of life support will be had with [husband] Yovany and the family in the future, but right now they’re just being introduced to their baby,” she told People.

DEALING WITH GRIEF AND HOPING FOR THE BEST

The child’s family has created a GoFundMe page seeking donations to help Yovany with the expenses of Yadiel’s medical bills. The money will also be destined to help the couple first son, Joshua, age 3.

“It’s been extremely difficult for him to cope,” Lozano said of Yovany, who’s only 20. “Once he was able to meet his child and hear the prognosis, which none of that shows that his child has a future with any type of quality of life, I think all of these things have been overwhelming to him.”

“People have joined them in their pain, but also just being there for them, and prayers have been very helpful,” she says.

Marlen was laid to rest on Saturday.