A 10-year-old girl who was taken to hospital with intense abdominal pain was found to be six months pregnant, prompting a police investigation into alleged sexual abuse.
The child’s 25-year-old mother brought her to a hospital in Colonia Dora, a small town in Argentina, last week after she complained of stomach pain, according to local outlet Infobae.
The mother reportedly told the obstetrician on duty that her daughter had not yet started menstruating.
Medical tests and an examination then showed that the girl was in an advanced stage of pregnancy.
During a subsequent investigation, the child reportedly told authorities that she had been sexually abused by her stepfather, Julio Vivas.
The 33-year-old suspect was arrested at the home he shared with his partner and her daughter. Police also confiscated his mobile phone.
Vivas will remain in custody while investigators examine the circumstances surrounding the alleged abuse.
According to El Doce, authorities have not yet issued an official statement confirming the final charges.
After the arrest, the girl’s grandmother, Norma, told Noticiero 7 that she had cautioned her daughter against trusting her partner, whom she had met online, and warned her not to leave him alone with the child.
“She met him through the phone, but I always told her not to trust him too much,” Norma Gomez said.
“I went through the same thing the little girl went through when I was eight years old. I know what it’s like to suffer. I always told my husband: if they touch one of my children, I’m capable of killing them with my own hands.”
The girl’s teacher said she was also shocked by the allegations and had not observed any obvious signs that the student was struggling.
“She’s a quiet girl, she does her homework… I’ve never noticed any strange behaviour from her, nor has she ever been upset,” she said.
Girl, 10, gives birth to stepdad’s child
The case comes only months after another 10-year-old girl in Brazil, described as traumatised, gave birth to a child fathered by her stepfather.
Hospital staff contacted police because of the girl’s age.
The 23-year-old man was arrested in April after being accused of repeatedly raping his eight- and 10-year-old stepdaughters. The children’s mother was also detained over allegations that she had attempted to protect her partner.
Sexual violence a major problem in Latin America
Sexual violence against children remains a major issue across Latin America, according to a report commissioned by the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights.
The report found that children face the greatest risk in their homes, while teenagers are vulnerable both at home and in the wider community.
According to UNICEF, two in every three children aged one to 14 in Latin America and the Caribbean experience violent discipline at home.
However, comparable data on sexual violence in childhood is very limited, largely due to differences in the definitions used to classify acts of sexual violence.
In Argentina, more than 40 per cent of victims of sexual violence are either children or adolescents, according to a government report released in 2023.
Data shows that the number of cases of sexual violence increased nationwide from 2016 to 2021, skyrocketing from 13,003 to 41,697.
