Paternity Testing & The Mexican Sex Scandal

It’s a story of sex, scandal and paternity testing that captured the tabloid press in Mexico and across America. Dubbed the Mexican Madonna, pop star Gloria Trevi became famous in the nineties after a flurry of pop releases. But it wasn’t until 1999 that she really became famous after being accused of helping to lure teenage girls into a web of sex and slavery.

Paternity Testing in Jail

Trevi fled to Spain and Chile where she became a fugitive from Mexico’s judicial system. She escaped to Argentinia and then Brazil, where she was caught and arrested by Brazilian police. A legal battle began as Brazil wanted to charge Trevi, but Mexican prosecutors wanted her tried in Mexico. The case was further complicated when she fell pregnant in jail and all of the Brazilian prison guards underwent voluntary paternity DNA testing in an attempt to uncover the biological father.

Pregnant in Prison

Trevi had accused one of the guards of raping her and said this is how she fell pregnant in prison. The paternity testing was in response to her allegations. There is a Brazilian law that allows women prisoners to be released to give birth, allowing them to live with their children in a home. The DNA test was a way to find out if her story was true or if it was in fact a planned pregnancy.

Smuggled Sperm

The Brazilian authorities ruled that all 75 guards in the prison voluntarily underwent paternity DNA testing, and DNA tests were carried out on the placenta after Trevi gave birth. The Brazilian authorities insisted on a DNA test as they said Trevi impregnated herself after a test tube of sperm was smuggled into the prison. Suspicions only increased when Trevi opposed the test saying only the baby’s parents could consent to a DNA test.

Extradited to Mexico

After the paternity testing and after she had given birth, Trevi was extradited back to Mexico in 2002. Trevi gave her baby to her mother to care for. She was acquitted and set free from prison after a hunger strike on September 21, 2004 due to a lack of evidence in the case. The story of sex, scandal and intrigue gripped the Latin American world and inspired a book about her life called ‘Girl Trouble’. As soon as Trevi was released from prison, she quickly went back to the recording studio and experienced huge success in Mexico and Latin America.