Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story
Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story | |
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Directed by | Paul A. Kaufman |
Written by | Christopher Canaan Maria Nation |
Produced by | Larry A. Thompson Harvey Kahn |
Starring | Judy Reyes Ana Ortiz Adolfo Matinez Hector Luis Bustamante Marlene Forte |
Edited by | Lisa Binkley |
Distributed by | Muse Entertainment |
Release date | August 17, 2008 |
Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story is a 2008 original LMN movie, starring Judy Reyes and Ana Ortiz. The film follows the events surrounding the kidnapping and rescue of Delimar Vera, the newborn daughter of Luz Cuevas.[1][2]
Plot
The story depicts the struggle of Luz Cuevas (Judy Reyes) to find her baby daughter, Delimar Vera Cuevas, who disappeared in 1997 after their house caught fire during a party. The police reported that Delimar was killed in the fire. However, Cuevas suspects that she was kidnapped, and that the fire was staged by an outsider. Six years after the fire, Cuevas meets Valerie Valleja (Ana Ortiz), who was at the party on the day of the fire. She has a six year old girl with her. The girl bears a resemblance to Cuevas, and she suspects it is Delimar. Cuevas begins an investigation into Valleja, and finds out that the girl is in fact Delimar through a DNA test.
Actual events
As depicted in the film, the daughter of Luz Cuevas and Pedro Vera, Delimar Vera, was taken by Carolyn Correa (depicted in the film as Valerie Valleja), a distant friend of Pedro's cousin. On December 15, 1997, Correa deliberately ignited a fire in Cuevas' house in Philadelphia to cover up the incident. After Correa took the girl, she raised her as her daughter under the name of Aaliyah, while Delimar's disappearance was attributed to the intense fire in the room.
Six years later, on January 2004, Cuevas attended a birthday party for an acquaintance and was surprised by her own resemblance to a 6-year old girl. With the help of a state representative, Cuevas managed to get a series of DNA tests which resulted in a confirmation of Cuevas' maternity over Delimar, Correa was arrested in 2004 and taken to trial, having been placed on $1 million bail. Entering a plea of nolo contendere, she was accused and found guilty of kidnapping, arson, and attempted murder, and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2005. Correa will be eligible for parole in 2014.
References
- ^ Tamara, E.J. (2008). "Caso de niña hispana desaparecida debuta como película de TV". NoticiasOnline.
- ^ "Mom finds kidnapped daughter six years later". CNN. March 2, 2004.
External links