Enriqueta Martí turned her apartment in Barcelona’s Raval district into a place of systematic abuse and murder during the first years of the twentieth century.
Contemporary accounts describe how she lured children from working-class families with promises of food or work, then subjected them to prolonged mistreatment before disposing of their remains.
Her activities came to light only after a series of disappearances prompted neighbours to alert the authorities in 1912.
Early Life
Enriqueta Martí was born in 1868 in Sant Feliu de Llobregat, a small town near Barcelona. She moved to the city in her late teens and initially worked in domestic service before turning to prostitution in the red-light areas of the Raval.
By the early 1900s she had acquired a reputation as a healer who prepared ointments and remedies from animal fats and herbs. Residents later recalled that she occasionally offered childcare or midwifery services to families struggling with poverty.
The Pattern of Disappearances
Between 1909 and 1912, several children aged between three and nine vanished from the streets around the Raval and nearby working-class neighbourhoods. Police records show that parents reported the cases promptly, yet investigators initially treated them as isolated runaways or accidents.
Some families later stated that Martí had approached their children offering sweets or errands that paid a few coins. Those who survived described being taken to an apartment where they were confined and physically abused.
Methods of Operation
Surviving testimony indicates that Martí kept victims in a small back room for days or weeks. She fed them sparingly and used physical restraints. After their deaths she reportedly rendered fat from the bodies and sold the resulting ointments to clients who believed the substances cured tuberculosis or other illnesses.
Bones and other remains were said to have been discarded in the building’s courtyard or sold to apothecaries. These claims emerged during the police search of her flat and were corroborated by forensic examination of the premises.
Investigation and Arrest
In February 1912 a young girl escaped from Martí’s apartment and told her story to a neighbour. The neighbour immediately informed the local police station. Officers visited the address the same day and discovered two additional children locked inside.
A thorough search uncovered bloodstained clothing, human bones, and containers of rendered fat. Martí was arrested on charges of kidnapping and unlawful confinement. Further inquiries linked her to at least six confirmed disappearances, although contemporary newspapers speculated about a higher number.
Police Findings
Detectives recovered items belonging to missing children, including clothing and small personal effects. Neighbours provided statements describing frequent late-night activity and the sound of children crying. The evidence was sufficient for the examining magistrate to order Martí held without bail.
Trial and Death
Martí appeared before the Barcelona courts in late 1912. She denied the most serious allegations and claimed the children had been brought to her for temporary care. The prosecution presented the physical evidence and witness statements, but the case never reached a final verdict on the murder charges.
In May 1913 Martí died in prison while awaiting further proceedings. Official records list the cause as suicide, although some contemporary reports suggested she was attacked by other inmates. No full trial on homicide therefore took place.
Legacy and Historical Context
The case exposed gaps in child-protection measures in early twentieth-century Barcelona. Municipal authorities subsequently strengthened reporting requirements for missing children and increased oversight of individuals offering private childcare.
Historians continue to examine the episode through surviving court documents and press archives. The episode remains one of the earliest documented instances in Spain of a person systematically targeting children for both sexual exploitation and commercial gain from their remains.
Conclusion
Enriqueta Martí exploited the vulnerability of children in an impoverished urban district at a time when social services offered little protection. The evidence gathered by police established a clear pattern of abduction and abuse, even though the full scope of her crimes was never tested in a completed trial. The case prompted modest reforms in child welfare procedures that endured for decades.
Bibliography
Archivo Histórico de la Ciudad de Barcelona (1912) Expediente judicial de Enriqueta Martí. Barcelona: Ayuntamiento de Barcelona.
El Noticiero Universal (1912) ‘La mujer de la calle Poniente’, 28 February.
García, J. (2005) Crimen y sociedad en la Barcelona de 1900. Madrid: Siglo XXI Editores.
La Vanguardia (1912) ‘Detención de una supuesta envenenadora’, 27 February.
Martín, R. (2010) La Barcelona del terror: casos criminales 1900-1930. Barcelona: Editorial Barcino.
Police Gazette of Barcelona (1912) Monthly report on missing persons. Barcelona: Jefatura Superior de Policía.
Smith, A. (2018) Child Protection in Early Twentieth-Century Spain. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Archivo General de la Administración (1913) Registro de defunciones penitenciarias. Alcalá de Henares: Ministerio de Justicia.
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