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In a creepy case of life imitating art, the National Police in Madrid have arrested a 33-year-old woman, who has been nicknamed the ‘Venezuelan Baby Reindeer’, and her brother for allegedly stalking and harassing dozens of victims, mainly women and children, in their home country.

 

Rebeca and Francisco García were spotted in a supermarket just days after the Venezuelan Prosecutor's Office reported that it was going to request their extradition from Spain.

 

The case is eerily similar to the smash hit Netflix series Baby Reindeer, written by and starring Scottish man Richard Gadd. The autobiographical documentary tells the story of barman and aspiring actor Donny, who is relentlessly pursued by serial stalker Martha.

 

Here in Spain, the duo allegedly fled Venezuela a week after their case went viral, following complaints from several women in the capital of Caracas that were were being harassed – both physically and online – by the siblings. Their mug shots were posted far and wide and another citizen from Venezuela recognised them in a shop in the Hortaleza district of Madrid on Monday May 13.

 

 

According to the Spanish authorities, a multitude of victims shared photos, videos, screenshots of text messages and emails on social networks in South America claiming they were being targeted by a woman called Rebeca. Her unending tirade caused families to “live in terror” after she broke into their homes, invaded their personal lives and even took “intimate photos” without consent.

 

One alleged victim, Claudia Aguirrezabal, told police that Ms García wrote her a 500-page pornographic book and once sent her a message reading: “The killer is inside the house.”

 

She also claims that the alleged stalker began threatening her friends through email, writing: “If somebody is touching you, I am going to kill them as that is disrespectful to us and our relationship.”

 

It would appear that the harassment has been going on since at least 2019 and that the brother and sister team had dozens of targets. However, the victims themselves believe that the authorities didn’t take them seriously because Ms García is a woman.

 

And incredibly, the police in Madrid weren’t able to detain the siblings for long, since the Venezuelan authorities haven’t yet issued an arrest warrant, so it would appear that the pair are, once again, at large.

 

It has since come to light that both of the Garcías have a long history of mental illness and have been admitted to a private clinic in Caracas in the past for borderline personality disorder and acute psychopathy “due to the consumption of Psychoactive substances”.

 

 

Image 2: Venezuelan Prosecutor's Office