‘Womb raider’ stabbed friend ‘over 100 times to cut baby out of her body’

A woman has been accused of murdering her pregnant friend and cutting the baby from inside her body in order to pass it off as her own after she faked a pregnancy for months.

Taylor Parker, 29, is on trial for the slaughter of pal Regan Simmons-Hancock and her unborn child, Braxlynn Sage, in New Boston, Texas, where she reportedly left the 34-weeks pregnant woman to die in front of her three-year-old daughter.

Parker, who has since been given the moniker "womb raider", allegedly attacked her friend, 21, in October 2020 as she was "desperate" to give her boyfriend a child but was struggling with an inability to conceive.

READ MORE: Sick state-backed Iranian TV compares Queen to Hitler and calls her death 'good news'

The suspect pleaded not guilty at her trial on Monday to charges of capital murder, kidnapping, and non-capital murder in connection with the baby's death.

If convicted, Parker could face the death penalty.

The judge heard how Parker spent ten months faking her pregnancy.

Assistant District Attorney Kelley Crisp called parker an "actress of the highest order".

She said: "The lies and fraud go on and on; the layers of fraud are staggering. You are going to have to understand the fraud to understand what happened on October 9.

• 

  Professional bull rider shot dead by his on-off girlfriend following argument

"This started months and months ahead of time until it passed the point of no return, and it ended up in homicide."

Parker had reportedly ordered a suit online to make her look pregnant, "all the while hunting for a victim".

Witnesses said the suspect offered to pay $100,000 (£86,000) for a surrogate mother.

She reportedly told her then-boyfriend Wade Griffin she was set to have their child on the day Simmons-Hancock died, he told police.

Griffin added that he was scheduled to meet the suspect at the hospital for the birth of their child around lunchtime on that day.

Prosecutors have also claimed that after stabbing the victim more than 100 times, Parker removed the unborn baby from her womb using a scalpel.

She reportedly even put the placenta in her trousers to make it seem like she had given birth to the deceased child herself.

Defending attorney Jeff Harrelson said: "It’s a complicated case, factually and emotionally.

"The law is the lens and filter you must view these facts through. Sometimes it’s not black and white but a shade of grey."

Parker's trial is ongoing.

To stay up to date with all the latest news, make sure you sign up for one of our newsletters here.

READ NEXT:

• Town crier 'upset' over proclaiming King George instead of King Charles in viral clip

• Ukraine forces encounter new threat as Russia attacks with Iranian 'suicide drone'

• Benefits mum spent £22k in 'massive' spree after cash paid into bank by mistake

• Royal fan who saw Queen's coffin 7 times slammed as viewers say 'it's not a theme park'

Source: Read Full Article