A 38-year-old woman convinced a couple she was a sick 12-year-old, then they threw her a birthday party and paid for her treatment

Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira, 38, has been sentenced to prison in Joinville, Brazil, after convincing a couple she was a 12-year-old girl in need of care. As reported by Ladbible, the court convicted her of fraud and using a false identity on August 20, following a 14-month period during which she lived with the family.

Amanda initially approached the family under the name Gabriele, claiming to be eighteen and looking for baking work. Once she gained their trust, she reportedly changed her story, claiming she was actually eleven years old and alleging she had been abused, neglected, and diagnosed with autism, explaining her adult appearance by claiming she had been forced to take hormones as a child.

According to court findings, she used baby bottles, pacifiers, toys, and children’s drawings to reinforce the persona, and the couple came to treat her as their own daughter, organizing a twelfth birthday party for her and paying for weight-loss treatment using the prescription drug tirzepatide.

The deception unraveled after a relative found similar past cases online

The scheme reportedly began to fall apart after a relative of the family searched online and found reports describing similar cases involving Amanda in other parts of Brazil. The family contacted police at the end of May, and Amanda was arrested at their home on June 2.

During the investigation, she admitted to using a false name and age, and investigators determined she was originally from Ceará rather than Pará, as she had previously claimed. A forensic examination of her phone reportedly turned up searches related to how an autistic person behaves and how to draw in a way meant to appeal to evangelical families, evidence prosecutors used to argue the deception was premeditated.

Investigators have linked Amanda to similar alleged deceptions across several Brazilian states, including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Rio Grande do Sul, Goiás, Paraná, and Ceará. Other unrelated legal cases have circulated in the news recently as well, including one involving Ohio prosecutors opposing bond reduction for a mother facing child endangerment charges.

Nutritionist Renata Magalhães, who said she met Amanda in 2023 under the name Duda, described her as someone who could put on a persona convincingly, and alleged that Amanda would insert needles into her own body and later remove them in front of others to generate sympathy. Social worker Delma Soares reported a similar experience in 2017, when Amanda reportedly stayed with her in Belo Horizonte under the name Karolina while presenting herself as a vulnerable teenager.

Soares said she grew suspicious after noticing Amanda’s physical strength and behavior did not match the age she claimed, and recalled Amanda arriving with injuries from needles and wires that required hospital care. A psychologist who encountered Amanda in 2023 also said that despite a childlike voice and mannerisms, adult traits remained apparent, according to AOL.

Amanda’s defense attorney, Lúcio Sousa, argued in court that her actions reflected a survival strategy rather than a deliberate scheme, describing her as a vulnerable person for more than two decades. Amanda reportedly told police she did not intend to scam anyone, though the judge concluded she acted consciously to induce the victims into error for material benefit. Other unrelated consumer disputes have drawn viral attention recently as well, including one involving a Texas storage unit auctioned off after a payment processing glitch. Her defense team has said they intend to appeal the ruling.