Eleonor Alejandra Marín Mendoza is the subject of Netflix’s upcoming true crime documentary A Child of My Own, which will take viewers on the journey of her struggle to have children. But her story takes a shocking twist.
Mendoza, who was known to her peers as Alejandra, was arrested in 2009 after she faked a pregnancy and kidnapped a baby. However, a deep dive into the case may reveal that not every detail came to light when the case went to trial.
Everything to know about Mendoza’s crime ahead of the premiere of A Child of My Own, below.
What Did Eleonor Alejandra Marin Mendoza Do?
Mendoza was just 17 years old when she married her husband, Arturo Calderón Gamiño, in Mexico while she was pregnant with their child.
After she suffered a miscarriage during her first and second pregnancies, Mendoza underwent IVF. She then became pregnant for a third time, though miscarried again. However, Mendoza opted to not tell her family about the third miscarriage and went on to fake her pregnancy.
Mendoza claimed she was working in admin at a hospital when she was pretending to be pregnant. It was at the hospital where she met single mother Mayra, who she said was pregnant but did not intend to keep her baby.
Mendoza and Mayra then allegedly came to a deal that after she gave birth, Mayra would give Mendoza her baby to raise as her own. When Mayra gave birth five months later, Mendoza arrived at the hospital and picked up the baby.
However, the arrangement did not go according to plan and Mendoza and Gamiño were arrested at a nearby hotel just hours later on June 18, 2009. Meanwhile, the baby was returned to her birth mother.
Investigators Learned That Eleonor Alejandra Marin Mendoza’s Story Did Not Line Up
As an investigation was launched into the matter, witness statements revealed that Mendoza’s claims about the arrangement told a different story. Mayra told investigators that she met Mendoza for the first time after she gave birth and that she posed as a social worker.
Mayra also insisted that she never agreed to give Mendoza her baby and she was left in terror when her daughter was taken from her hospital room.
Mendoza was ultimately found guilty of kidnapping and was sentenced to serve 13 years in prison, according to The Guardian. Gamiño was also arrested for the scheme, but was acquitted at the trial after he spent two years in prison.
Eleonor Alejandra Marin Mendoza Will Appear in Netflix’s ‘A Child of My Own’
A Child of My Own filmmaker Maite Alberdi spoke to The Guardian about the documentary and revealed that she met with Mendoza behind bars to discuss the case. She claimed that Mendoza shared her side of the events, and Alberdi began to shape the project around her perspective.
However, Alberdi eventually learned that Mendoza was lying about what happened when she received court documents from the case. “When I saw the evidence, I thought: ‘Oh no, I was so wrong.’ I crashed into reality,” she said.
Alberdi eventually confronted Mendoza about her findings, who denied the version of events that took place in court.
While she initially considered backing away from the film, Alberdi said she found a way to tell the story as authentically as she could.
A Child of My Own starts with actor Ana Celeste portraying Alejandra’s version of events in a tone reminiscent of a telenovela. By the second half, viewers will get to see Alberdi interviewing Mendoza, Gamiño, Mayra, the judge from the trial and a psychologist.
When Does ‘A Child of My Own’ Premiere?
A Child of My Own will premiere on Netflix on August 13, 2026.
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