Mercy Casanellas claiming baby swapped at El Salvador hospital wants to keep both

Home Top

The Duggars rally around Josh's wife at family wedding: Jim Bob, Michelle and the kids take a tense-looking Anna to their cousin's big day as they prepare for further sex scandal revelations
EXCLUSIVE: 'Doctor, where is my son?': Agony of the mother who claims newborn was swapped with a 'changeling' in an El Salvador hospital as she comes face to face with the doctor held for 'trafficking'
'Run, Joe, run!': Biden cheered as he delivers passionate Labor Day speech on the economy - doing little to quell presidential campaign speculation
Former Taliban captive Bowe Bergdahl hit with charge that has rarely been used since WWII and could mean life behind bars
Sailor 'shoots his wife dead' while at home with their young children on Labor Day weekend
American expat weeps with relief as she's CLEARED of murdering her multi-millionaire Wall Street husband in their lavish Costa Rica bolthole
There was never any proof Amanda Knox was at the scene of Meredith Kercher murder, Italy's top court rules as judge slams prosecutors who were 'frantic for a guilty party'
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's lawyer in critical condition after being shot in the head partying at 3am ahead of the West Indian Day Parade
'I would never have shot Cecil if I knew he had a name': Lion killer dentist breaks his silence as he denies animal took 40 hours to die - and says he will be back to work on Tuesday
Five shot dead, including boy, 7, in Charlotte over bloody Labor Day weekend as city reels from violence that left 10 others wounded
My life with the world's most infamous drug lord: Pablo Escobar's son reveals the heartbreak, fear of violence and seemingly endless wealth he experienced growing up
Bernie Sanders pulls ahead over Hillary Clinton as new poll finds that he has a nine-point lead over her in New Hampshire and is swiftly gaining on her in Iowa
'You're still handsome!': Obama heckled by female admirer on trip to Boston and the compliment leaves him (just for once) lost for words
Hillary Clinton promises to take on Donald Trump over his immigration policy as she returns to Iowa amid slumping polls
Meet Donald Grump: Sesame Street creates a Trump puppet parody who makes fun of the poor and is the 'grouchiest' garbage mogul who has 'more trash than any of you'
How hundreds of Muslim migrants are converting to Christianity to boost their chances of winning asylum in Germany
Youngest son of eccentric Spanish aristocrat throws open doors of his country home to two Syrian families that fled war-torn country
Angelina Jolie urges Europe to prioritise refugees from war torn countries saying they are in more need than economic migrants
Penned in with 13ft fences topped with razor wire: Migrants treated like prisoners in new 'Alien Holding Center' as Hungary rounds up unrelenting wave of refugees across its border
Refugee shelters being targeted in arson attacks after two suspicious fires at migrant homes in Germany force people to flee
Paraded in front of a jihadi army and beheaded on his knees: ISIS releases 10-minute hi-res film featuring an executioner's sword being sharpened before an Afghan soldier is butchered
EXCLUSIVE - 'They said grab the head, pull it back and cut from the neck': Boy, 14, who featured in ISIS propaganda video reveals how he was taught how to kill and to hate at 'Cubs of Caliphate' terror camp
Father confronts 'pervert' after claiming he saw him taking photos of his daughter in the toy aisle of a Dallas Walmart
Brave son of slain Illinois cop helps carry his casket as hundreds of mourners gather for emotional funeral and the manhunt continues for his killers

Mercy Casanellas and her British-born, US-based husband Richard Cushworth claim baby Jacob was swapped after birth in El Salvador
She gave birth at 35 weeks by C-section when husband was out of the country and was given anesthetic after birth
Ms Casanellas, who is administrator for evangelical Christian mission her husband runs, was suspicious as baby seemed darker the next day
Their fears were confirmed three months later when a DNA test they ordered on baby Jacob said there was 0.000 chance he was theirs
Dr Alejandro Guidos was arrested on Thursday and the country's Attorney General has now ordered a criminal investigation
She confronted him in court and tried to tear covering from his face before collapsing in tears

By Sara Malm for MailOnline and Matt Roper for MailOnline and Martin Gould In Waxahachie, Texas, For Dailymail.com

Published: 11:14 EST, 7 September 2015 | Updated: 16:25 EST, 7 September 2015

121

View
comments

The mother of the baby boy allegedly swapped at birth at a private hospital in El Salvador screamed: 'Doctor, where is my son?' as she confronted her gynecologist.

Mercedes 'Mercy' Casanellas and her husband Richard Cushworth - who is British born but a longtime US resident who calls himself American - are currently fighting to find out what happened to their biological son after he was born by emergency Caesarean at a private hospital in the capital San Salvador.

A DNA test has proven that Ms Casanellas and her husband are not the biological parents of four-month-old Jacob, the child she has been 'loving, breastfeeding and caring for 24/7' since he was handed to her in May this year.

She spoke to Daily Mail Online after a courtroom confrontation last Friday with the doctor arrested on suspicion of being involved in swapping their baby - possible as part of child trafficking crime.

Scroll down for video

Confrontation: Mercy Casanellas tries to rip the covering Dr Alejandro Guido used to conceal his face as he appeared in court in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, after being arrested.

Agony: Mercedes 'Mercy' Casanellas collapses outside court in El Salvador after the first appearance of the doctor she and her husband Richard Cushworth allege swapped their newborn son for a darker-skinned baby

Seized: Dr Alejandro Guido is taken away in handcuffs by police in San Salvador. They acted on the allegation that he had swapped Richard Cushworth and Mercy Casanellas's baby with another after birth

Under pressure: Gynecologist Dr Alejandro Guido being taken away by police who arrested him on suspicion of child trafficking

Nightmare: Mercedes 'Mercy' Casanellas, pictured with British husband Richard Cushworth and baby Jacob, say they hope to keep him, and if able to find their biological child, they intend to raise both children

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Mercy has said that she and her husband hope to keep baby Jacob, and if they are able to find their biological child, they intend to raise both children.

'I love my baby, he is my baby, I am even breastfeeding him right now,' she says of baby Jacob.

'If they can't find his mother, he already has parents, us. We are taking care of him and, even though we know he isn't our biological son, we still love him.

'We are praying and trusting in God that he will help us.'

Ms Casanellas is convinced that her obstetrician, Dr Alejandro Guidos who is currently under arrest, had planned the swap all along.

Mercy, a missionary working in a large church in San Salvador, had been based in Dallas, Texas with her British husband Richard Cushworth.

The Cushworths' son was due to be born on June 20th, and in order to be present at the birth, Mr Cushworth had departed for a month-long trip mid-May.

However, just a few days later - five weeks ahead of due date - Mercy was told by Dr. Guidos that she would need an emergency Cesarean.

Changeling: Ms Casanellas, pictured with the couple's biological son after the birth, says that she noticed that the child given to her by hospital staff in San Salvador was darker and looked nothing like her or her husband

Horror: Mr Cushworth and Ms Casanellas, pictured with Jacob, told MailOnline that she wanted to believe that Jacob was their biological son, but that she felt she needed to do a DNA test in the end

'Richard was out of the country and suddenly the doctor said 'no the baby has to be delivered today', so he got me to the hospital immediately and got the baby out by c-section.

'The anesthesiologist, the pediatrician - the entire team was chosen by him, I did not know them.'

Speaking to Daily Mail Online on Monday, Ms Casanellas also revealed that Dr Guidos had been unusually close to her during her pregnancy.

'One night in January we feared that I was about to have a miscarriage, and he stayed with me the whole night, stayed by my bedside and cared for me.

'I considered that very nice of him, very professional, and it was not until I told the investigators about this after the swap that they told me that this is not how it is done.

'He was also the only person who knew that my husband was British and that he would be out of the country for one month.'

Ms Casanellas was taken to the Centro Ginecologico, a private hospital in San Salvador, and underwent an emergency Caesarean on May 21st this year, at 35 weeks pregnant. Jacob was born weighing six pounds.

Under arrest: Ms Casanellas say she is convinced Dr Alejandro Guidos, who was arrested on Thursday, orchestrated the baby swap, and that he was unusually attentive to her during her pregnancy

Suspicion: Mercy Casanellas told Daily Mail Online that Dr Guidos had been unusually close to her during her pregnancy 'He was also the only person who knew that my husband was British and that he would be out of the country for one month,' she said.

Evidence:The birth certificate for Jacob Cushworth. It says: 'Certifies that the child Cushworth Casanellas is the son of Mr. Richard Anthony Cushworth and Mrs. Mercedes Alicias Casanellas Soto, born in the hospital at 21:28 on Thursday the 21st of May, 2015. Witnesses: Dr. Antonio Alejandro Guidos Reyes, Claudia Edit Serrano De Ramos (Licensed Nurse). (Footprints of the child).

'I saw my son at 9.30pm when he was born, and then they put me to sleep. In the morning, around 8am, they brought in everyone's baby, but they never brought mine.

'I told them 'Where is my baby? Where is my son?' but they just told me: 'He is coming, he is coming.'

'They brought him at lunch time, and I asked them 'why is this baby different?' He has darker skin, his facial features were different, his nose, his eyebrows.

'They told me that it was because he was a newborn and that he was swollen and that he would change.

'They said his skin would get lighter and that the swelling would go down. They said everything was ok, so I believed them.

'But then my family started to make comments, they kept saying 'this baby has darker skin', and 'he doesn't look like your husband and he doesn't look like you' for the next two months.'

After Mercy had recovered from her c-section she and her husband began readying themselves for their return to Dallas, Texas, where she is set to study for a Masters degree.

'I didn't want to think about the idea of a switch because I am very connected to my baby and I breastfed him every day - I still do.

'I thought, 'how could I even think that this is not my child?', but the thoughts were always on my mind, and finally I made the decision to to a DNA test because I didn't want to have these thoughts hanging over me as I went to study for my Masters.'

Unbelievable: After Ms Casanellas gave birth, she was given an anesthetic and when she woke up, she claims she was given a different baby (pictured is their biological son, taken by a family friend)

Not theirs: Ms Casanellas and Mr Cushworth fear their light-skinned baby (pictured) was snatched deliberately by staff at the hospital, in order to sell the boy to child traffickers

Back in court: Richard Cushworth, 42, was at his wife's side today for another court hearing in San Salvadaor

Strain: Both parents were feeling huge emotion as they appeared in court. 'I love my baby, he is my baby, I am even breastfeeding him right now,' Mercy Casanellas says of baby Jacob.

CHRISTIAN PARENTS SPREADING THE WORD IN EL SALVADOR

Richard Cushworth is a self-confessed former heroin and cocaine addict who credits Christianity for being clean.

He has spoken of his he had 20 years of drug use, starting with marijuana, then having a hard drugs habit.

But in a YouTube video on the website of the missionary group run by his parents - themselves devour Christians - he says a year of faith-based rehab finally cured him.

He then went to the Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas, Texas, where he met Mercedes Casanellas - before returning to El Salvador where he appealed for help to set up a drug rehab facility based on the one he had been through.

'The Lord called me here to the little nation of El Salvador,' he said, introducing a video asking American donors for help for get a drug rehab facility he was running.

'The Lord has just laid an incredible vision on my heart of what this facility can do.'

It is not clear what the status of the project is, as he had been in Texas again earlier this year, working for

His Salvadorean wife has been previously involved in evangelical Christian missionary work in Guatemala and on the website recounts how she was in a car which was shot at four days before she was due to study at the Christ for the Nations Institute.

She said it was 'Satan' who had been behind the shooting, to stop her studying at the institute.

Casanellas was working as an administrator at another church project in the country.

The college where they met equips students to preach an evangelical, Pentecostal and charismatic version of Christianity.

There is no room for debate on sexuality morality or on the literal interpretation of the Bible.

That includes creationism. The institute has in its ground the Museum of Earth History, which is run by the Creation Truth Foundation.

It says that 'dinosaurs are an enemy to the Gospel of Jesus Christ' and preaches that they were made extinct by the flood which Noah survived in his ark.

The Christ for the Nations Institute has been heavily promoting work in Latin America, where the evangelical Christian movement has been making major inroads to traditionally Catholic countries.

It runs a dedicated Spanish-language program.

The DNA test, which was sent from El Salvador to two separate labs in the U.S., came back to show that there is zero per cent chance of Mercy and Richard being the biological parents of little Jacob.

Ms Casanellas and Mr Cushworth - whose parents were from Bradford, West Yorkshire, and now live in Wilmington, Delaware - now fear their light-skinned baby was snatched deliberately by staff at the Ginecologico private hospital, in order to sell the baby boy to child traffickers.

Ms Casanellas came face to face with the doctor at a court appearance in San Salvador.

She tried to tear off a covering he was wearing over his face, then collapsed in tears. Today she was back in court with her husband.

In an emotional interview with a local TV station, a teary Ms Casanellas said: 'We haven't been able to sleep thinking about where he is, and who has him.

'We just want them to give us our son back.' Mr Cushworth, who met Ms Casanellas when he worked as a missionary in El Salvador, added: 'It's a horrible situation. I have a child and I don't know where he is.'

Ten babies were born on the same day, including the Cushworths son: four boys and six girls.

All the four boys have had DNA tests, which all parents agreed to - they expect the results of this on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Mercy and the Cushworth family also have what they say is further proof that their child may even have been swapped for a baby from a different hospital.

In the pictures taken by Mercy's friend who was present at the birth, their biological child can be seen with a yellow clip around his umbilical cord - a clip which is not removed until the cord falls off naturally.

However, the baby that was handed back to Mercy had a white clip around his umbilical cord, one which the family believes is from a different hospital.

'We had the footprints taken of my child when he was born for his birth certificate. Later when I went back to change a mistake on the document I noticed that the prints on his certificate were different to the ones we had - they were smaller and a different pattern.'

At first San Salvador's Ginecologio hospital, considered the best private hospital in the country, denied that the baby could have been swapped, saying it was 'impossible' due to their 'high standards' of control.

In the indictment against Dr Alejandro Reyes Guidos, prosecutors from the Attorney General's Office asked for urgent authorization to perform searches of facilities at the Centro Ginocologico hospital, and Dr Guido's clinic, saying they have the necessary evidence to suggest that in these premises 'objects linked to the probable crime' would be found.

Among the accusations made by the mother was that she asked Dr Guidos on several occasions if the baby would be white, to which he reponded 'No, because latin genes are stronger'.

The report said that, after leaving hospital with the baby four days after the birth, Ms Casanellas changed him for the first time and noticed that his testicles were very dark, unlike how she had remembered. She also saw that the baby had 'an abundance of black hair, when she had remembered her baby being bald.'

She also said that, while in the delivery room her son had weighed six pounds, ten days after the birth when Ms Casanellas took him to be weighed again, the baby weighed seven pounds, which she thought was strange for a baby who had been born premature.

The baby she took home also had a mole, unlike the baby she had held in the delivery room, according to the indictment.

Lies: Ms Casanellas say she pointed out that the baby handed to her looked different from the one she had given birth to, but that they told her it was 'swollen' because it was a newborn and that she skin would lighten

Plot thickens: Ms Casanellas said photos she took of her baby son (pictured) soon after the birth prove that the baby was white-skinned

Ms Casanellas made contact with the El Salvador authorities on August 27, after receiving the results of the DNA test, but said she was 'feeling very ill' and wasn't able to travel to the country immediately.

The Attorney General's Office ordered the confiscation of all the hospital's CCTV equipment, administration and medical registers, and information about all the mothers and babies attended by Dr Guidos.

Earlier on Monday, The El Salvador Gynecology and Obstetrics Association (ASOGOES), of which Dr Guidos is a member, called for the presumption of innocence enshrined in the country's constitution for Dr Guidos, and demanded that 'due process is performed, respecting this guarantee as a person and as a medical professional.'

They also called on the Attorney General's Office to conduct investigations 'in order for Dr Guidos' innocence to be proved.'

'When an obstetrician attends a birth, whether naturally or by Caesarean, it is normal that the baby is immediately handed over to the neonatologist or paediatric nurse,' a spokesperson said.

'So if there is any swapping of the baby it is impossible for the obstetrician to do this.'

Previous misfortune: The house where Richard Cushworth had been living in Texas burned down earlier this year. He had been working in construction.

Couple: Richard Cushworth and Mercedes Casanellas met at a Christian college in Dallas, Texas

He also said that it is normal for a mother who has had a Caesarean to be sedated following the birth in order to 'avoid stress' and relax her.

The misfortune is not the first to befall the couple. Mr Cushworth's last known address was in the Dallas suburb of Waxahachie, living on a quiet street where the houses are well-maintained and tidy.

But Cushworth's house was unlike any other on Noxona Drive. 'It was filthy, totally dilapidated,' neighbor Shawna McGrady told Daily Mail Online exclusively.

'He just rented a room there, he was only there for about a month and a half.'

In January while Cushworth was out of the country the house burned down. 'It was a total loss,' recalled McGrady. 'We weren't exactly sorry that it went because it was in such a terrible state. We joked that I had torched it.

'He came back about two months ago to see if there was anything he could retrieve, but it had all gone. Everything was lost in the fire and then they came and bulldozed what was left.'

Cushworth shared the house with another man, who was at home with his four sons when the blaze broke out, said McGrady. 'They all got out unhurt, but I still don't know what caused the fire.'

We just want them to give us our son back. It's a horrible situation. I have a child and I don't know where he is.

Richard Cushworth

McGrady said she never met Mr Cushworth's wife. 'I knew he had a wife and child and that is why he went to El Salvador.

'But I was surprised she was having the child there — maybe she couldn't get a visa to come here, I don't know.'

Mr Cushworth worked in construction while in Waxahachie. 'He always drove a white truck with a ladder on it,' said McGrady.

He also sold a special potting soil containing diatomaceous earth — which he mixed himself for a nursery selling soil enriched with chalkstone, said McGrady. 'He was very nice, he gave me a couple of plants,' she said.

Cushworth told El Salvador's Noticias Hechos that he has heard nothing from the British embassy or other UK authorities, despite his appeals for help and support.

Mr Cushworth was speaking before the first court appearance today of Dr Alejandra Guidos, accused of masterminding a plot to steal his and wife Mercedes Casanellas' baby at the private Centro Ginocologico hospital in San Salvador.

He said: 'I want to believe that it was just a mix-up, but my instinct tells me that it was a crime… if there are medical professionals involved in this, I'm in shock.'

The family's lawyer, Fernando Meneses, said that although the hospital is conducting an internal investigation, it 'does not want us to collaborate'.

He said: 'Today we will test the system of justice, because it should give us an answer. This is not just theft, there are two children, one who was stolen and the other which disappears. We don't want to persecute anyone, we just want to find the boy.'

Meneses said that a similar incident happened at the same hospital, four decades ago, and that the family involved are willing to testify. Their baby was found after an investigation and court case.