Lucxi

[KyooMac]

I was just watching today's UM which I Tivo. I searched the forum and found nothing about the missing deaf and mute girl who allegedley had a baby, Lucxi. All they knew was that she was well taken care of before being discovered. Anyone got an update?

[mistagee]

her name was lucxi i think...i think they found out that she had a baby, but i dont remember it being with her or cared for her. I think she was part of a people smuggling ring from Brazil or Colombia, thats what someone had told me.

[KyooMac]

Yeah, that's what I got from the episode, but I was wondering if anyone knew anything more

[Opal]

What was she being smuggled for?... Slave labor?

[KyooMac]

The UM episode never mentions any smuggling

[mistagee]

the smuggling part wasnt mentioned in the story, it was mentioned to me by someone who was working with the police department at that time. it is common for handicapped people both mentally retarded and deaf people to be smuggled and used as slaves since they cannot escape and they cannot communicate. they are often eschewed by their families or are told they are being taken to special schools in the US which is why no one is looking for them in their respective countries. A ring was recently broken up in NYC and in NJ.

[Ireneparalegal]

I live in the town that this occurred. And guess what? We don't even know what happened. How can that be? I don't know. It made headlines here of course, but shortly after, nothing. When this UM episode aired it was mentioned in our paper but nothing else after that.

[KyooMac]

That's too bad, I was really hoping that she was returned to her family or at least to her hometown. Shame...

[Mastermind]

No update on this one, I guess.

This is going to seem like a dumb question but, is it possible that she is faking being deaf and mute?


My prevaling thoughts on this case are that
1. Lucxi's caretaker was deported or died and that left her unable to survive.
2. An even disturbing thought is that she was part of some illegal surrogate or a babyknapping victim. She may have been an easy target because of her handicap.

I don't think Lucxi was smuggled in, since she apparently was flown in on a plane.

I also don't think Lucxi is here first name either.

[bell83]

No update on this one, I guess.

This is going to seem like a dumb question but, is it possible that she is faking being deaf and mute?

I think that's pretty unlikely. She'd have to be an amazing actress to pull it off, without any slip ups, not to mention I'm sure they probably had a doctor check her out at some point, to make sure she didn't have any health issues.

[egswanso]

Sad to hear there's been no resolution of this one, despite the many years that have passed. I wonder if Lucxi was able to communicate any more of her story - i would have to think she's learned more signing and/or other forms of communication.

I suspect that she was an unwilling participant in something unsavory, such as a sex ring. Being a deaf-mute may her easy to exploit (and perhaps not "missed" by her family). She could have been abandoned for many reasons; perhaps her caretaker died, perhaps she just got too old for her keepers.

I would think she'd be able to tell some of her story or have some idea where she came from (South America would be my guess) now, especially if she continued to learn how to communicate.

[Mastermind]

I think that's pretty unlikely. She'd have to be an amazing actress to pull it off, without any slip ups, not to mention I'm sure they probably had a doctor check her out at some point, to make sure she didn't have any health issues.

She would only have to fake the doctor once, though. The rest of the time she just has to fake lay people.

[bell83]

She would only have to fake the doctor once, though. The rest of the time she just has to fake lay people.

Yes, but a doctor looks for not only the physical signs of deafness, which are impossible to fake, but also runs tests, which can be anything from hearing test-type things to trying to scare the hell out of her with a loud noise right near her. And all it takes to screw up is a slight turn of the head to a sound that one is not supposed to hear. I just find it hard that she could do so. And if she is, to what end? I just fail to see a reason for her to fake, of all things, deafness. If she's trying to escape her past, why not fake amesia? Not to mention she went on UM...

I grew up with some people who were deaf and others who were pretty close. My own personal opinion is that it would be difficult to fake being deaf/mute for long.

[Mastermind]

And if she is, to what end? I just fail to see a reason for her to fake, of all things, deafness. If she's trying to escape her past, why not fake amesia? Not to mention she went on UM...

Well it was her caretakers that went on UM. I doubt Luxci had a say in the matter (if she was even capable of voicing an objection)

If Luxci was a homeless person, acting deaf/mute or psychotic is a great way to get yourself a place to eat and sleep.

Yes, but a doctor looks for not only the physical signs of deafness, which are impossible to fake, but also runs tests, which can be anything from hearing test-type things to trying to scare the hell out of her with a loud noise right near her.

There have been people that have faked this test. Several con artists and criminals have done so to get insurance or bilk money. Especially if your aware of what the test consists of .

Were also assuming this test was done. For all we know the caretakers may have taken hear at her word and no test was ever done. They would only do a test if they had suspicion she was faking.

[Necco]

I hope they'd have done test to determine that the cause of her deafness was organic and not psychogenic.

[sdb4884]

She must have better communication skills by now, I wonder can she reveal more informationa about herself?

[Apostapler]

What year did they find her?

[ms_bates]

Lucxi's case is such a puzzling one. It was suggested that she had previously been well cared for, someone had cooked her meals and taught her hygiene and personal grooming habits, yet apparently she was never given the tools to effectively communicate. Maybe she came from a family that couldn't afford to send her to special schools for the deaf and mute?

One theory that popped into my head was that perhaps she was indeed from Mexico, as the segment noted was a possibility. Maybe her parents or caregivers were getting up there in the years and/or could no longer care for her. Maybe someone brought her into the states and left her, knowing that she would be taken in and cared for?

[egswanso]

The way she was just abandoned in the U.S. doesn't strike me as something someone who loved or cared about her would do. Nor is the social-safety net in the U.S. such that her family would be assured she'd be taken care of.

Personally, I think it more likely she was used in a sex-ring (perhaps an under-aged sex ring) and when she got too old and/or pregnant, she was just dumped on the streets to come what way. It's not a very happy thought, but it does seem to fit.

[Mastermind]

Personally, I think it more likely she was used in a sex-ring (perhaps an under-aged sex ring) and when she got too old and/or pregnant, she was just dumped on the streets to come what way. It's not a very happy thought, but it does seem to fit.

1.She was flown in to the country though, according to her story? Wouldn;t a sex ring want to drive her across the boarder?

2. What did the sex ring do with her daughter? I'm going to assume she gave birth long after they dumped her.

3. You don;t think it could be illegal surragacy or a baby ring? She might have been left because she was the least important piece. They had the baby, the mother was useless to them. I could be wrong, but didn;t Luxci say her baby was taken from her?

[egswanso]

1.She was flown in to the country though, according to her story? Wouldn;t a sex ring want to drive her across the boarder?

2. What did the sex ring do with her daughter? I'm going to assume she gave birth long after they dumped her.

3. You don;t think it could be illegal surragacy or a baby ring? She might have been left because she was the least important piece. They had the baby, the mother was useless to them. I could be wrong, but didn;t Luxci say her baby was taken from her?

1. It's no harder to fly her in, yes she'd need a passport and (perhaps) a visa, but that's not too difficult to obtain and may not even have been required, depending on what country's passport she carried.

2. Who knows? You can't really put much beyond people sick enough to enslave others for sex. Revoltingly, there are people who would pay to have sex with babies, or perhaps the baby would be raised to be a courtesan like some geisha or harem girl. If it was a male baby, it could have been killed.

3. Certainly, it could be. There's really no evidence one way or the other and that's just as likely as my own speculation. About the only thing I'm fairly certain of is that she was brought to the U.S. for something illegal (sex ring, surrogacy ring, baby ring, drug mule, etc.), used for that purpose, then abandoned. Like I said before, I would think Lucxi herself should be able to supply more of her story now.

[Mastermind]

1. It's no harder to fly her in, yes she'd need a passport and (perhaps) a visa, but that's not too difficult to obtain and may not even have been required, depending on what country's passport she carried.

I respectfully disagree. Flying illegally into a country is much more difficult than crossing the boarder.

Obtaining a fake visa and a passport is very expensive and risky for the supplier.

Why would you spend that much and take such a risk to import one deaf/mute girl into the US? What's so special about Luxci? I'm sure you could find several women like her in Mexico that you can send across the boarder with less expense and risk.


2. Who knows? You can't really put much beyond people sick enough to enslave others for sex. Revoltingly, there are people who would pay to have sex with babies, or perhaps the baby would be raised to be a courtesan like some geisha or harem girl. If it was a male baby, it could have been killed.

The people that use the services are sick, but those that provide it are merely illegal business men. They're only doing this because there is money in it. They're only going to be as cruel as is necessary to run their business.

If they're capable of killing the baby, they're more than willing to kill Luxci. Luxci is as much a threat to them as the baby, she's deaf

Luxci is still young enough to be worth something to this sex slave ring. They would only have gotten rid of her if there was no value due to her disability.

I'm more inclined to believe that if it was a sex ring.
a. Luxci was captured, after she had her daughter.
b. She was captured after she mad her legal flight into the country
c. She was disposed of because they realized she was deaf and thought her a liability.

3. Certainly, it could be. There's really no evidence one way or the other and that's just as likely as my own speculation. About the only thing I'm fairly certain of is that she was brought to the U.S. for something illegal (sex ring, surrogacy ring, baby ring, drug mule, etc.), used for that purpose, then abandoned. Like I said before, I would think Lucxi herself should be able to supply more of her story now..

There would have been evidence of her being a drug mule.

Her baby is a potential piece of evidence. If the child is found.

[egswanso]

I respectfully disagree. Flying illegally into a country is much more difficult than crossing the boarder.

Obtaining a fake visa and a passport is very expensive and risky for the supplier.

Why would you spend that much and take such a risk to import one deaf/mute girl into the US? What's so special about Luxci? I'm sure you could find several women like her in Mexico that you can send across the boarder with less expense and risk.

With today's security, I agree with you 100%, but back in the late 80s/early 90s, not so much. It wouldn't have to be a fake passport, she could have just as easily used her own, but that's kind-of a red herring, as pre-biometric data, it was pretty darn easy to buy a foreign passport and alter it; i personally was offered a wide selection of Belizean, Guatemalan, Mexican, or Honduran passports to choose from by a shady Rasta on Caye Caulker for something like $50 back in the mid 90s. As to why? I don't know.

The people that use the services are sick, but those that provide it are merely illegal business men. They're only doing this because there is money in it. They're only going to be as cruel as is necessary to run their business.

If they're capable of killing the baby, they're more than willing to kill Luxci. Luxci is as much a threat to them as the baby, she's deaf

Luxci is still young enough to be worth something to this sex slave ring. They would only have gotten rid of her if there was no value due to her disability.

That's true. Something about her made her useless to her owners and without knowing more, it's hard to say what it is.

I'm more inclined to believe that if it was a sex ring.
a. Luxci was captured, after she had her daughter.
b. She was captured after she mad her legal flight into the country
c. She was disposed of because they realized she was deaf and thought her a liability.

All possible.

There would have been evidence of her being a drug mule.

Would there after the drugs have been "passed?"

Her baby is a potential piece of evidence. If the child is found.

True, but short of a DNA test, it would be almost impossible to find him/her. That baby would be in his/her 20s now.

[Apostapler]

What year did they find her?


Anyone?

[Mastermind]

Quote:
There would have been evidence of her being a drug mule.

Would there after the drugs have been "passed?"

Not evidence of the drugs themselves...but other evidence.

I'll not elaborate on the details...but I think you know where I'm going with this. puke:

i personally was offered a wide selection of Belizean, Guatemalan, Mexican, or Honduran passports to choose from by a shady Rasta on Caye Caulker for something like $50 back in the mid 90s. As to why? I don't know.

It's a good thing you didn't..you would have wound up being the next FRAUD case on UM. :lol:

With today's security, I agree with you 100%, but back in the late 80s/early 90s, not so much. It wouldn't have to be a fake passport, she could have just as easily used her own, but that's kind-of a red herring, as pre-biometric data, it was pretty darn easy to buy a foreign passport and alter it

They wouldn;t use her own passport, because that would create a paper trail that law enforcement could follow.

[egswanso]

Anyone?

The date for her original discovery was September 8, 1992, according to the segment.

[egswanso]

Not evidence of the drugs themselves...but other evidence. I'll not elaborate on the details...but I think you know where I'm going with this. puke:

True enough... it's also not real consistent with being taking care of and the like. Lucxi does look more South American then Central American to me, but that's hardly solid proof of anything, just my subjective opinion based upon generalities.

It's a good thing you didn't..you would have wound up being the next FRAUD case on UM. :lol:

Ha! There have been a few fugitives from UM captured in Belize, I thought.

They wouldn;t use her own passport, because that would create a paper trail that law enforcement could follow.

Maybe... it creates a paper trail, but one fairly hard to follow (again, more so then, less so (hopefully) now.) If Lucxi's story about flying into the U.S. is true, her passport/visa information (real or false) was collected at some point by customs, but it hasn't done anyone any good in terms of finding her identity.

[rhzunam]

Lucxi does look more South American then Central American to me, but that's hardly solid proof of anything, just my subjective opinion based upon generalities.


How so?

[egswanso]

How so?

Well, like I said, it's very subjective, but she didn't appear to have pronounced Mestizo or Amerindian features, which is some-what phenotypical more common in some South American countries (Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Columbia) then in most, but not all Central American ones.

I wouldn't put much weight in it, however, as to where she comes from. Indeed, there's really not much solid evidence in the segment that she's Hispanic, beyond a nickname and the statement she "might have been born in Mexico" without any explanation as to why this might be so.

[Mastermind]

Maybe... it creates a paper trail, but one fairly hard to follow (again, more so then, less so (hopefully) now.) If Lucxi's story about flying into the U.S. is true, her passport/visa information (real or false) was collected at some point by customs, but it hasn't done anyone any good in terms of finding her identity

Depends when this plane trip occured. For all we know it could have happned when she was 10 years old.

[Mastermind]

Well, like I said, it's very subjective, but she didn't appear to have pronounced Mestizo or Amerindian features, which is some-what phenotypical more common in some South American countries (Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Columbia) then in most, but not all Central American ones.

I wouldn't put much weight in it, however, as to where she comes from. Indeed, there's really not much solid evidence in the segment that she's Hispanic, beyond a nickname and the statement she "might have been born in Mexico" without any explanation as to why this might be so.

You know we cold be looking at this thing the wrong way.

1. It's not crazy she could actually be from Spain, hence the plane ride. There actually is a pretty large population of South Americans living in Madrid.
2. Luxci may not even be her name. Just a word she clinged on to or was misinterpreted.
3. I'm going to assume that they did a medical test that proved she had a child. Could this whole child story just be her imagination?

[bell83]

3. I'm going to assume that they did a medical test that proved she had a child. Could this whole child story just be her imagination?

It's entirely possible. My thought, just from what I saw in the segment, was that they immediately jumped to the conclusion that she had had a kid when she made a motion that had to do with a baby. Could it be she wasn't even referring to herself having a baby? Maybe she was trying to give info about someone else, like her caretaker or someone else close to her?

[rhzunam]

Well, like I said, it's very subjective, but she didn't appear to have pronounced Mestizo or Amerindian features, which is some-what phenotypical more common in some South American countries (Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Columbia) then in most, but not all Central American ones.

I wouldn't put much weight in it, however, as to where she comes from. Indeed, there's really not much solid evidence in the segment that she's Hispanic, beyond a nickname and the statement she "might have been born in Mexico" without any explanation as to why this might be so.

First off you are grouping two countries which population makeup is very contrasting (Argentina, Uruguay who have a whiter population than the rest of countries, Chile which is in between and Colombia which doesn't vary at all from the rest of South American, Central American and Mexico).

Second you hit maybe the biggest point of problem with the indentification, which is that the populations in Latin America has such a common ethic makeup that there is almost no way to distinguish where she is from. In fact the major way that you can distinguish people and tell from what country they are (even Argentina and Uruguay) in Latin America is by accent. And since she can't speak, we can't really tell where is she from. She could as well be from Brazil. If she's Mexican, entering thru the mexican border is more of a possibility but if she's from Bolivia, Argentina or Paraguay, it may have been better to smuggle her thru a plane. Also if she's from South America and they smuggled her thru Mexico, I really doubt they would have smuggled her thru land all the way thru but flown to Mexico and then smuggled her thru the border. It's too long a trip and to many borders too pass. She never did say where she took the airplane ride.

Also if she's from the caribbean, then it's even more guaranteed that she would take a plane ride. The ride from a boat is a tough one. And if she's from Puerto Rico, there is no way she would go from anywhere to the US but by plane. And she wouldn't need a passport to go to the US if she's puertorrican.

There also to me the question of how they know the things they do. For example she appeared to be holding a baby a lot and that's why they said she had a child but she could as well had a baby sister that she took care of or rocked in her arms. To me that would be a better example. If she cant comunicate in sign language and couldn't in his native land, then I have a hard time thinking he could have a relationship and progressed it enough to get pregnant and if she was raped, I think that would be easier to find (that she had some trauma) than if she went on an airplane or something like that (an a bigger clue). That's also the same reason why the sex ring idea fails for me.

[egswanso]

You know we cold be looking at this thing the wrong way.

1. It's not crazy she could actually be from Spain, hence the plane ride. There actually is a pretty large population of South Americans living in Madrid.
2. Luxci may not even be her name. Just a word she clinged on to or was misinterpreted.
3. I'm going to assume that they did a medical test that proved she had a child. Could this whole child story just be her imagination?

That's all true. They should easily be able to determine if she had a baby.

[egswanso]

First off you are grouping two countries which population makeup is very contrasting (Argentina, Uruguay who have a whiter population than the rest of countries, Chile which is in between and Colombia which doesn't vary at all from the rest of South American, Central American and Mexico).

Second you hit maybe the biggest point of problem with the indentification, which is that the populations in Latin America has such a common ethic makeup that there is almost no way to distinguish where she is from. In fact the major way that you can distinguish people and tell from what country they are (even Argentina and Uruguay) in Latin America is by accent. And since she can't speak, we can't really tell where is she from. She could as well be from Brazil. If she's Mexican, entering thru the mexican border is more of a possibility but if she's from Bolivia, Argentina or Paraguay, it may have been better to smuggle her thru a plane. Also if she's from South America and they smuggled her thru Mexico, I really doubt they would have smuggled her thru land all the way thru but flown to Mexico and then smuggled her thru the border. It's too long a trip and to many borders too pass. She never did say where she took the airplane ride.

Also if she's from the caribbean, then it's even more guaranteed that she would take a plane ride. The ride from a boat is a tough one. And if she's from Puerto Rico, there is no way she would go from anywhere to the US but by plane. And she wouldn't need a passport to go to the US if she's puertorrican.

That's all absolutely true. Her inability to communicate leads to rank speculation and there's no way of knowing where she's from from her appearance. She really could be from anywhere.

There also to me the question of how they know the things they do. For example she appeared to be holding a baby a lot and that's why they said she had a child but she could as well had a baby sister that she took care of or rocked in her arms. To me that would be a better example. If she cant comunicate in sign language and couldn't in his native land, then I have a hard time thinking he could have a relationship and progressed it enough to get pregnant and if she was raped, I think that would be easier to find (that she had some trauma) than if she went on an airplane or something like that (an a bigger clue). That's also the same reason why the sex ring idea fails for me.

Another good point. We're not told enough to really know what medical tests were performed (they should be able to tell if she had a baby and/or showed evidence of sexual trauma).

The bank receipt is another clue which we really aren't given much information: the receipt had an account number, that account had to belong to someone, yet all we're told is that it was a "dead end"

[Mastermind]

The bank receipt is another clue which we really aren't given much information: the receipt had an account number, that account had to belong to someone, yet all we're told is that it was a "dead end"

1. Cash purchase from a "Wal Mart" like store probably leads nowhere.
2. The fact that someone purchased the clothing recently could be a clue.

[Apostapler]

The date for her original discovery was September 8, 1992, according to the segment.

Thank you!

[sdb4884]

Any updates? did she fake this whole ordeal for real?

[everybodylovesrs]

Any updates? did she fake this whole ordeal for real?

There is no proof 100% she faked. According to one article she jumped once when a balloon popped.

From another article I read, I believe she was last seen in northern California maybe a year after her segment aired on Unsolved Mysteries, and she has not been seen since. She could be at another shelter, jail, living with someone, on the street, or, worse......

[RobinW]

Any updates? did she fake this whole ordeal for real?

Here's an excerpt from a post on Websleuths I found very interesting, which opens up the possibility that Lucxi may not have been intentionally faking being deaf, but just lacked the basic communication skills to properly respond to sounds she could hear:

"When I worked in mental health, I had a client who was unable to speak due to surgery for throat cancer. She was in her 60s, flamboyantly mentally ill, very poorly educated (she made it through 3rd grade, from what I was able to gather), and probably developmentally delayed to boot.

She would try to "write" letters and words on the air, and become very frustrated that people couldn't understand what she meant. And because she was so "lost" in her mental illness, she sometimes almost seemed deaf, if that makes sense. Having said all that to say, I wonder if this young woman wasn't so much putting on an act of being deaf, as she was too mentally ill or developmentally delayed to interact as one who can hear."

I've always had my doubts that she would intentionally pretend to be deaf as that is really one of the stupidest scams one can perpetuate and there's almost no chance of it being successful for very long. If someone is startled by a loud noise, it's virtually impossible not to naturally react to it, no matter how good a faker you may be.

[browneyes106]

I also wondered if Lucxi could have been possibly faking it. But I agree with the previous poster she could have other communication issues. I also remember watching this segment one time with my brother and he cracked up laughing at her doing that skipping in the street and the red boots the actress wore.

[TheCafeDisco]

I recently told my husband about ths case. Afterwards he asked..."well what happened to the deaf girl?"
I told him she jumped when a balloon popped.
He got real quiet for a minute as if thinking and then looked at me and said "ohhhh so u think she is faking!?" ROFL

[Wamisto]

I recently told my husband about ths case. Afterwards he asked..."well what happened to the deaf girl?"
I told him she jumped when a balloon popped.
He got real quiet for a minute as if thinking and then looked at me and said "ohhhh so u think she is faking!?" ROFL

We men are sometimes dense like that. As my female coworker says to me repeatedly, "boys are stupid".

Either that, or like most men, his mind quickly turned to sports or something else after he asked a question so he wasn't really listening and therefore what you said didn't register for a while. :lol: I ought to know - it happens with me all the time.

[everybodylovesrs]

I see no reason for her to fake it. If it was to get shelter, apparently it didn't last long because she ran away from one of the places she was staying.

[sdb4884]

What's her current situation I wonder?

[sdb4884]

Wonder why the bank reciept lead didn't turn up anything, how did she her point across?

[browneyes106]

I haven't thought about this case in awhile. There was probably more to her story than what UM said on the show. If she was faking it, she could have been doing it for protection reasons. I had a feeling she might have abused or something and maybe faked being deaf and mute that way she would have more reasons for social services and other agencies to help her.

[CuriousMind90]

What happened to her? It seemed at the time of the UM case she was under care? Did she go missing or is she still under care?

This might sound odd, but she was kinda cute as portrayed in the segment.

[Oooga Chucka]

This might sound odd, but she was kinda cute as portrayed in the segment.


This.

[sdb4884]

This.

This :)

[Skywalkr1200]

one thing I wish they would have done...or at least mention if it was done was go to that bank in san diego that she had the receipt from...somebody might have remembered her

[1990 UM fan]

I wonder where she is now or if anyone is looking for her?