Dirty War adoption couple jailed
Dirty War adoption couple jailed
Published: Saturday 05 April 2008 07:52 UTC
Last updated: Saturday 05 April 2008 08:10 UTC
Buenos Aires - A court in Buenos Aires has convicted an Argentine couple and a former army officer on charges relating to an illegal adoption during the country's 1976 to 1983 military dictatorship. The case was brought by the couple's adopted daughter, Maria Eugenia Sampallo, after she learned that she was one of the "stolen babies" from Argentina's Dirty War. The couple were sentenced to seven and eight years in jail for illegally adopting a child, falsifying documents and concealing the true identity of a child. The former officer was sentenced to 10 years in jail for handing the child over to the couple.
Ms Sampallo, now 30 years old, discovered via a DNA test in 2001 that she is the daughter of missing political prisoners. Human rights groups estimate that between 400 and 500 newborn babies were taken from their mothers in torture centres during the Dirty War and adopted by military families and their friends. Groups such as the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo have helped almost 90 people discover their true identities.
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