Women of Controversy: Juana Barraza

Juana Barraza (1957 - present) is a Mexican amateur wrestler turned serial killer, known as "La Mataviejitas" ("The Old Lady Killer"). She was convicted of murdering elderly women in Mexico City between the late 1990s and 2006. Barraza was arrested in 2006 and sentenced to 759 years in prison for her crimes.

For Further Reading:

• Juana Barraza Was A Pro Wrestler By Day – And A Serial Killer By Night
• Shocking story of Mexico’s first serial killer—a female wannabe wrestler
• Little Old Lady Killer handed 759 years in a Mexican prison

This month we're talking about women who found themselves at the center of controversy -- whether deserved or not.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Hannah Bottum, Lauren Willams, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, and Vanessa Handy. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. This month, we're talking about women who found
themselves at the center of controversy, whether deserved or not.
Today we're talking about a woman who had not one,
but two alter egos and hid behind them while targeting
those who are most vulnerable. Let's talk about Juana Barrazza.

(00:29):
Juana Barrazza was born on December twenty seventh, nineteen fifty seven,
in Idalgo, Mexico. From the beginning, she experienced poverty and hardship.
According to Juana, her mother was an alcoholic who frequently
mistreated her. The mistreatment reached a peak when her mother
allegedly gave twelve year old Hajuana to a much older
man in exchange for beer. This resulted in a cycle

(00:51):
of physical and sexual abuse. Hauana ended up getting pregnant
and giving birth to a baby boy. Juana went on
to have three more children as a single mother. She
supported them through street bending, domestic work, and petty theft.
But this, of course, wasn't her dream. Her dream was
lucha libre. In Mexico, pro wrestling, known as lucha libre,

(01:18):
is a popular form of entertainment. It's not just about
the physical sport, but also the pageantry. The fighters or
lucca d'ores, have nicknames, wear colorful masks and suits, and
use the ropes to acrobatically go after their opponents. Juana's
nickname was the Lady of Silence. She wore white boots
with dark stripes, a pink suit with a white butterfly belt,

(01:41):
and a butterfly mask to cover her face. With a
stocky and strong build, Juana may have had the look
of a lucca d'Or, but that's all she had. She
never actually competed in a professional match. She occasionally participated

(02:03):
in the amateur circuit, but in reality, she was a
popcorn bender at the wrestling arena in Mexico City who
socialized with professional wrestlers. Meanwhile, in nineteen ninety eight, a
darkness fell over Mexico City. Elderly women started being murdered
as highly respected but also very vulnerable members of society.

(02:24):
This shook the country. People were outraged that old women
were being targeted. The Attorney General's Office of the Federal
District reported that between nineteen ninety eight and two thousand
and three, ten elderly women were killed, and the woman
at the center of it all was Lamata Viahitas, or
the little old Lady Killer. Unbeknownst to the public, Lamata

(02:45):
Vahitas was Juana. When she wasn't working at the wrestling arena,
she was scoping out her next victim. She targeted old
women who were by themselves in heading home. Sometimes she
offered to help them carry their groceries inside. Other times

(03:06):
she would claim to be a governmental health aid there
for a checkup. Once she was in, she scanned the
home for any item that could be used to strangle someone.
It could be anything from a telephone cord to a
pair of tights. But that wasn't the end of it.
After her victim was dead, Juana rummaged through their things
to find a small keepsake to take with her. Finally,

(03:26):
she would slink out without being noticed. By the mid
two thousands, the police were under serious pressure to find
the person responsible for these murders. At least three hundred
undercover police officers were placed across the city in public
places to see if they could catch the killer in
the act. While they may have been looking in the
right places, they were looking for the wrong person. They

(03:47):
thought the killer had to be a man because strangulation
usually requires big, strong hands, a feature they didn't think
women could possess. Plus, witness accounts described the killer as
someone with a short and stocky build, albeit wearing wind clothing.
With this piece of information, the police targeted cross dressing
sex workers. The community was furious the profiling was cruel

(04:09):
and unjust. Finally, after years of terror, the police caught
a lucky break. On January twenty fifth, two thousand six,
Joel Lopez went to visit his eighty two year old neighbor.
When he got there, the door was open and the
place was completely ransacked. As he wandered through the apartment,

(04:30):
he encountered a woman in a red coat. It was Juana.
They briefly made eye contact before she fled. Joel soon
found his neighbor lying on the floor. Shocked, he ran
out of the apartment and flagged down a police car
that was passing by. He told the police about the
woman in the red coat. They were able to track

(04:52):
Juana down before she could leave the area. When they
brought her in, they found the eighty two year old
woman's ID, some food stamps for the elderly, and a
cell phone Lamata Viahitas had finally been caught. While on trial,
Juana was rather stoic. When asked why she did it,
she simply said, I got angry. She confessed to her

(05:15):
final murder, but that was it. She tried to pin
the killings on other people, but the police never found
any evidence that she had accomplices. Her fingerprints matched the
prince at multiple crime scenes. In total, they were able
to find evidence to connect Juana to sixteen different murders,
but the actual number is believed to be upwards of forty.

(05:36):
In two thousand and eight, the judge Foundjuana guilty and
sentenced her to seven hundred and fifty nine years in prison.
When she heard the verdict, she calmly said, may God
forgive you and not forget me. Generally see today want

(06:00):
to spend her days in prison working as a gym instructor.
On the outside, she's considered a pop cultural icon. In
twenty twenty three, Netflix released a documentary about her life
called The Lady of Silence La Mata Vahitas Murders. All
month We're talking about women of controversy. For more information,
find us on Facebook and Instagram at Wamanica podcast special

(06:23):
thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator.
As always, will be taking a break for the weekend.
Talk to you on Monday.