Mayra's baby was kidnapped by Alejandra Mendoza, who faked a pregnancy and took the newborn from a hospital. The baby was returned unharmed, and Mayra has spoken out.
The Kidnapping
Alejandra Mendoza was convicted of kidnapping a newborn from a hospital. The documentary A Child of My Own on Netflix explores the case, weaving fictionalised retellings with real-life interviews and home video footage. Alejandra was given a 13-year prison sentence for the crime.
After marrying her husband Arturo, the couple dreamed of having a child, but Alejandra suffered three miscarriages. Feeling pressure from her husband's family, and with Arturo desperate to have a son, she faked her third pregnancy.
Mayra's Story
Alejandra claimed she met Mayra at the hospital, who was pregnant with her second child and did not want to keep the baby. She said they struck a deal for Mayra to hand over the baby after birth. However, the courts found this untrue, and a prison psychiatrist found she suffered from 'disassociation', which led her to believe certain fabrications were real.
After Mayra gave birth, Alejandra took the baby girl out of the hospital in a gift bag. She revealed the truth to Arturo, who reluctantly agreed to hide them. The hospital reported the baby missing, and they were arrested hours later at a nearby hotel.
Aftermath
Mayra claims she had no conversations with Alejandra until the day her baby was born, when Alejandra introduced herself as a social worker. Mayra's daughter was unharmed and returned to her. The film's creator, Maite Alberdi, interviewed Mayra's child, who is now a healthy and happy teenager. Alberdi told The Guardian in July 2026: “I didn’t want to victimise her when she’s not a victim. Her friends don’t know. In school, she would just become the girl who was kidnapped. I didn’t want to create an issue in her adolescence.”
Mayra features at the end of the film, where she says: "I don't have any sympathy for her. I never have. She didn't feel any sympathy when she kidnapped my daughter. And she hasn't shown any remorse either. If you ask me if I have forgiven her or if I...it's something that...no, I couldn't do. And I don't think I can ever forgive her."
Alejandra later admitted upon her release: "What did I do wrong to be here? Breaking the law, lying, deceiving, causing pain. I was afraid and scared that he [Arturo] would leave me for failing to become a mother and I would be targeted and judged. Actually, I was judged for something much worse in the end."
A Child of My Own is on Netflix.
