A pregnant 19-year-old woman, Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, who went missing turned out to be murdered by 46-year-old Clarisa Figueora who had offered her free baby clothes, who then removed her baby from her womb.

Met in a Facebook group

The younger woman was nine months pregnant then, and had responded to Figueroa's offer of free baby clothes within a Facebook group for expectant mothers, the Associated Press reported.

She had driven from her high school to Figueroa's address in south-west Chicago, four miles (approximately 6.43km) away from her own home.

When Ochoa-Lopez arrived, she was strangled with a coaxial cable and had her baby cut out from her body.

A few hours later, Figueroa called emergency services, claiming that she had given birth at home, and "her" baby was not breathing.

First-responders tried to resuscitate the infant boy, before transferring both Figueroa and the baby to a nearby hospital.

On May 7, friends directed detectives on the case to Ochoa-Lopez's Facebook account, showing her interaction with Figueroa within the Facebook group they had communicated in.

At that time, Figueroa had also started a GoFundMe campaign what she said was her dying baby's funeral, which has now been taken down.

When police arrived to question Figueroa about Ochoa-Lopez's disappearance, her daughter, Desiree Figueroa reportedly told them that her mother was in the hospital with a leg injury, before adding that her mother had just delivered a baby.

Body dumped in a trash can

The police returned with a search warrant on Tuesday, May 14, after DNA tests showed that Ochoa-Lopez and her husband Yiovanni Lopez were the parents of the baby.

Blood was found in the hallway and in the bathroom, along with cleaning supplies.

The 19-year-old's body was discovered in a trash can at the backyard of Figueroa’s home.

First-degree murder charges have been filed against Figueroa and her daughter.

The mother’s boyfriend, 40-year-old Piotr Bobak has also been charged with concealment of a homicide.

The police claims that the trio were planning to raise the baby as their own.

The baby is reportedly in a grave condition, though the family is praying for a miracle, with Ochoa's husband calling the baby a miracle that his wife left him.

Top image adapted via Facebook and ABC7's website