Mum sold daughters virginity

Mom ‘sold 12 daughters’ virginity’

A mother of 14 in Colombia tried to make ends meet, police say, by pushing her daughters into “hell” and selling their virginity for a couple hundred dollars.

Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno, 45, was arrested this week together with a 51-year-old contractor who police believe impregnated one of the young daughters.

She broke down in tears when she stood in front of the cameras after being arrested in Bogota, the Colombian capital. The Bogota Metropolitan Police say Zapata sold the virginity of 12 daughters to much older men seeking to have sex with young virgins.

Authorities also say the suspect would begin selling her daughters to men as soon as the girls turned 12 years old. She charged anywhere between 300,000 and 400,000 Colombian Pesos ($160 to $212) for a virgin.

But Zapata strongly denies the accusation. Colombian authorities often show high-profile suspects to the media shortly after arresting them. When Zapata was standing in front of the cameras Wednesday, one of the reporters shouted a question to her: “Did you prostitute your daughters?” She answered: “No, my darling.”

Colombian police say they learned of this alleged case of abuse because one of the alleged victims stepped forward. Authorities say one of the suspect’s daughters forced into prostitution gave birth to a baby boy when she was 14. She had refused her mother’s orders to have an abortion.