Natalia's Boyfriend Murdered

If you've heard our presentations on Tejarcillos, you may remember Natalia. She was the young teenager who attended our ministry functions faithfully, and eventually brought in her sisters and parents, Fran and Ileana. The latter were living together unmarried at the time. In the six years since then, they have grown mightily in their walk with God and taken over most of the functions of the ministry, including managing funds, children's and youth ministry, discipleship of adults, and leading their own Bible study. None of this would have happened if not for Natalia.

Sadly, after bringing her parents into the ministry, Natalia, now 20, made some poor choices. She dropped out of school, and began seeing a young man named Victor, who was known for his womanizing and drug use. She got pregnant and now has a beautiful little girl named Alexa. That boyfriend ended up in jail. Next, she began seeing a young man named Cesar who was a gang member.

One night a few weeks ago, Cesar got into an altercation with a member of a rival gang. They ended up pointing pistols at one another in the ultimate stalemate. The other gang member pulled his trigger...the gun jammed, and Cesar escaped without firing his own weapon.

A few days later, Cesar went by Fran and Ileana's to pick Natalia up to go out. Natalia was not ready yet and Cesar said he'd go around the block and be right back. Cesar never made it. Fifty yards away from the house, he was surrounded by gang members and shot dead. Had Natalia been ready to go out, she would surely be dead, too.

Natalia gave a statement to the OIJ (Costa Rica's FBI) and is now in hiding. The killer has not been aprehended. He did, however, drop by Fran and Ileana's to "reassure" them that his quarrel had been with Cesar, and he had no interest in harming Natalia. We believe that this is most likely a ploy to bring her out of hiding into the open.

Natalia is being protected by Cesar's gang. We do not know where she is. Her little girl Alexa is being cared for by Victor's mother. Natalia calls Fran and Ileana but they cannot call her. Neither can visit the other at their respective homes. We have offered to have them get together at our place.

Please pray for:

• Natalia's safety
• That this would lead her back to the Lord
• For Fran and Ileana, who are worried sick about her