Margarita Zapata Moreno, Colombian Mother Of 14, Allegedly Sold Virginity Of 12 Daughters

A 45-year-old Colombian woman is facing charges for a crime that is hard for most mothers to believe, let alone commit. Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno, the mother of 14 children, has allegedly sold the virginity of 12 of her daughters, according to RCN Radio. Hailing from Bogotá, authorities believe the mother sought out men in a "favorable financial situation" and charged them $300 per minor. Her 16-year-old daughter, who is pregnant from the alleged sexual abuse, turned in Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno to authorities earlier this week. Her daughters, or victims rather, have given testimonies to their mother's actions. According to the testimonies, their mother would sell their virginities once the girls turned 12 by drugging the minors and forcing them to engage in sexual relations with the clients.

And the horror doesn't stop after selling the young girls' virginities! Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno even allegedly forced some of her daughters to become prostitutes, reports the Colombian daily El Tiempo, as a means for them to help pay the bills. The daughter who had the courage to turn her mother in told local authorities that she has been a victim of sexual abuse since the young age of 12. After becoming pregnant, her mother supposedly told her to get an abortion and that's when she went to the police. "It hurts that a mother would do this," said police Chief Carlos Melendez, the officer investigating the case, to reporters. "The mother contacted highly solvent but depraved men so they could have sex with the minors when they turned 12."

In addition to Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno, 51-year-old Tito Cornelio Daza has been arrested and it is believed that he has abused at least one of the daughters. Tito Cornelio Daza is believed to be the father of the 16-year-old pregnant daughter's unborn child. Both Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno and Tito Cornelio Daza--who have been arrested for carnal abuse of a minor under 14 and enforcement of prostitution--could face up to 25 years in prison and have denied the allegations made by the daughter. Margarita de Jesus Zapata Moreno is being held at El Buen Pastro prison while Tito Cornelio Daza is being kept at Modelo prison. The daughter who turned in her mother is reportedly receiving psychological help from the Colombian Family Welfare Institute and the two young children not exposed to sexual abuse (a 9-year-old girl and 11-year-old boy) are being taken care of by social services.

Sexual violence against minors is not uncommon in Colombia, as the National Legal Medicine Institute reported earlier this month that since January of this year, there have been 11,333 cases of sexual violence against minors in Colombia. What's more, El Tiempo reports that 83 percent of the victims of sexual violence are girls. Additionally, Amnesty International reports that many sexual violence cases are not properly investigated by the government. Marcelo Pollack, Colombia researcher at Amnesty International, stated last year: "By failing to investigate effectively sexual violence against women, the Colombian authorities are sending a dangerous message to perpetrators that they can continue to rape and sexually abuse without fear of the consequences."