Professional wrestling is a fascinating career, especially for those considered “luchadors”. With wildly colored costumes and amazing athleticism, these professionals are really something to see. One such luchador was Juanna Barraza, who brought attention to the darker side of the wrestling profession.
Juanna Barraza: AKA, La Mataviejitas
Juanna had many names after the horrific story unfolded. La Dama del Silencio, or La Mataviejitas, which translates to “The Little Old Lady Killer,” just to name a few.
Juana was born near Mexico City in December of 1957. We don’t know a lot about Juana; however, with no mention of her father, it can be assumed that Juana’s mother was a single parent. Unfortunately, she was also an alcoholic and traded or bartered Juana for beer. Juana was only 12 years old at the time. Due to this exchange, Juana was given to a group of men who repeatedly abused her.
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This abuse led to a pregnancy. Later, Juana had four children in all. Tragedy would strike again for Juana when her oldest son passed away from injuries that happened during a mugging. Perhaps these devastating circumstances contributed to Juana’s later sinister acts. Although tragedy and personal circumstances can significantly influence their behavior towards others, they do not excuse the choices Juana made that earned her that infamous name.
Juanna Barraza made a living for herself and her children by cleaning homes, selling items on the street, and stealing. Though not an ideal way of life, she did try to provide for her family. It is said that she tried her best to be a good mother to her children, as she did not have that experience with her own mother.
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Her Wrestling Career
Juana became interested in wrestling at some point; the exact date is unknown. She thought she was good at the sport and had a future in it. She made herself a ruda, which means heel, character, and was soon named La Dama del Silencio, which means the Silent Lady. It is said Juana was obsessed with lucha libre, and that is one of the reasons she got into wrestling. However, although Juana thought of herself as among her peers when it came to professional wrestling, she never made the cut. The sad truth is that she was nothing more than an avid fan with a costume and a wrestling persona she most likely gave herself.
Juana went so far as to hang out with wrestlers and would let them borrow money if they asked. She never competed in a professional match. Later, it would be discovered that in her room, Juana had a large picture of herself in her wrestling costume. Perhaps her failure to be the wrestler she so much desired to be was part of her anger. This does not excuse the heinous acts she committed on so many innocent victims.
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The Crime Spree
In 2002, Juana began her trek towards a darker side of life. She began to entice individuals through trust, kill them, and rob them. It is rumored that she may have killed 12 years before as well. Earlier reports of killings in Mexico City fit Juana’s MO. It appeared she did target her victims, given all of them were elderly women. Once her antics began, the media got hold of information quickly and just as quickly started spreading allegations such as how many victims there were. The number that was often floated around was up to 48 people. This may have been true because even though La Dama del Silencio was convicted of killing a multitude of people, 30 unsolved cases were never reopened. Juana was said to be Mexico’s first female serial killer, if not (possibly) first serial killer in general.
Each victim was female and over 60 years of age. All lived alone as well. It is suspected that Juana’s motive for the killings was due to resentment she held for her mother. Every victim was either bludgeoned or strangled and then robbed. It appears that Juana was not only good at hiding her identity during her wrestling days, but investigators would later say she was smart and careful each time she struck as a killer. Investigators were fairly certain that Juana would get to know her victims before and earn their trust. At times, she would even pretend to be a government official and would offer victims false welfare programs.
A Strange Calling Card
Another interesting fact that may or may not have significance in the case is that in several of the homes Juana targeted, the same painting, reproduced in print form, was also found in the victim’s homes. The painting is Boy in a Red Waistcoat by Jean-Baptiste Greuze. The investigation was somewhat derailed when investigators began to focus on the presence of paintings at the homes of several victims. It is reported that three victims had this painting or a print of it. However, no link was ever established between the paintings, the victims, and Juana. Although it didn’t completely derail the investigation, it did distract investigators for a time. Once focus was regained, investigators began to realize that Juana may be a genuine psychopath, meaning she would hurt people with no remorse about her actions.
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Before Juanna Barraza was caught and convicted, several other suspects were investigated and temporarily detained. Police first arrested a nurse because she resembled the composite sketch authorities had of the Old Lady Killer at that time. After realizing they didn’t have the right person, prostitutes were then looked into. Possibly due to the killer’s level of strength, investigators thought for a time that the killer may be a male dressed as a woman. Much of this was considered by authorities because of the bruising left behind on those victims who were strangled. Authorities thought they were too large to be made by a female. Little did they know who they were dealing with.
A Mysterious Woman
There is one eyewitness account, and that one witness was somewhat fortunate to escape from La Mataviejitas. It was also the beginning of the end of Juana’s killing spree. The encounter occurred in 2006. At this point, 47 women had been killed. A man named Joel Lopez decided to visit his elderly neighbor. When Joel went next door to see his neighbor, he found the door unlocked. Entering the home, he ran into a lady in a red coat. The mysterious woman looked directly at Joel and left the house. Joel went further into the home only to discover that his neighbor Ana Maria de los Reyes was on the floor of her room, and her home was ransacked. Reyes had a stethoscope wrapped around her neck, which caused her death.
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Joel ran back outside of the home and saw the woman in the red coat leaving. As she was walking away from the scene, a police car was rolling by. The law enforcement officers noted Joel’s angst at the situation and thought the lady in the red coat was suspicious. They stopped and spoke to her, eventually placing her into the back of the police car. The officers searched her and found a few items of interest. Included in those items were receipts from a store she had rented wrestling rings from, business cards of various professional wrestlers, and a keychain with her wrestling name engraved on it. (La Dama de Silencio).
Life After the Ring
It appeared Juana’s obsession with wrestling was very real. Later, it would be determined that she turned to murder because she missed the wrestling world. Due to her persona and reason for killing being so out of the ordinary, criminologists were fascinated with Juana and wanted to get to the bottom of her motive for the killings. The sad reality is that Juana most likely tried to become someone else by inventing her wrestler personality and then took out her anger regarding her mother on little old women who had done nothing wrong.
Trial and Conviction of Juanna Barraza
One of the biggest pieces of evidence that came to light was latent fingerprints. A latent fingerprint is the image of a fingerprint left behind after someone has touched a surface or item. These fingerprints linked Juana to at least 10 of the murders. She also confessed to killing a male over a dispute about pay for cleaning his home.
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At the end of March 2008, Juana was convicted of several of the murders; around 16. Her convictions included 16 charges of murder and aggravated burglary, as well as 11 more separate counts of murder. A judge sentenced her to 759 years in prison for her deadly deeds. For Juanna Barraza, prison does not seem to be too bad of a setup. It has been said that she is well-respected in prison, having been married, divorced, and selling food to inmates, while also working out at the gym to support her family. Juana will most likely never be released.
There have been a few documentaries made about Juana. In one interview in particular, she seems excited when she discusses how she strangled her victims. Her lack of empathy for humanity could explain why so many experts thought she was a genuine psychopath.
The evil acts committed against the known and possibly unknown victims of the Old Lady Killer will never be forgotten. When asked why she committed such acts, she is often heard denying most of the murders and simply saying that she was angry when she committed the crime. This story shows that you never truly know what another human is capable of doing.
