'Womb raider' who killed heavily pregnant woman and cut out her unborn baby is jailed for life



Jailed: Korena Roberts was sentenced to life for murdering 21-year-old Heather Snively and cutting her unborn baby from her womb

An Oregon woman who murdered a pregnant woman and cut her unborn child from her womb has been sentenced to life in prison.

Korena Roberts, 27, battered eight months pregnant Heather Snively with a collapsible police baton after luring her to her home.

She then used a sharp instrument to cut the unborn baby from Miss Snively's abdomen.

An autopsy showed that the baby boy, who did not survive, had been torn from Miss Snively's womb.

Her body was found stuffed into the crawlspace in the kitchen of Roberts' home in Portland, Oregon, in June 2009.

Police were alerted to the murder after paramedics were called to the home and discovered Roberts' boyfriend Yan Shubin desperately trying to revive a newborn baby and large amounts of blood on the floor.

Roberts, who has two children under 10, told paramedics she was the mother of the baby and was rushed to hospital, where an examination revealed she had not given birth.

For months before the killing, Roberts told neighbours that she was pregnant, going as far as buying a stroller, baby formula and parenting magazines.

Weeks before her death, Miss Snively moved to Oregon from Maryland to be with her fiance.

Detectives said they believe Roberts and her victim met online through the Craiglist website where both women were looking for baby clothes.



Killed: Miss Snively was battered to death with a police baton and her body was stuffed into a crawlspace in Roberts' home in Portland, Oregon

Lured: Roberts told people she was pregnant and even bought baby formula and a stroller before carrying out her attack

During a bail hearing, Roberts' lawyer said she had given birth to a stillborn child in 2007 and was obsessed with babies, repeatedly watching videos of births on YouTube, sewing baby clothes and telling people she was pregnant.

Neighbours said they often saw Roberts walking with Miss Snively.

Detectives said they believed Roberts deliberately lured Miss Snively to her home with the intention of killing her and stealing her unborn baby.



Miss Snively's mother Heidi Kidd said Roberts told her daughter she was pregnant and wanted to exchange baby clothes.



Miss Kidd, who earlier revealed the baby boy would have been called John Steven, said: 'I guess they decided to meet and I guess that was the wrong thing to do.



'But Heather's always been a very trusting person.'

Roberts had originally denied killing Miss Snively, but changed her plea yesterday and was jailed for life.

In 2004, a Missouri woman strangled another woman with a rope and then used a kitchen knife to cut a baby girl from her womb. She was arrested one day later after showing the child off as her own.