Yasmin Silva Nery was a 16-year-old teenager living in Araraquara, a city in the interior of São Paulo. Described by family and friends as a charismatic, intelligent, and loving girl, Yasmin was an exemplary student with many plans for the future. Like most young people her age, she loved spending time on social media, especially on Twitter, where she shared her thoughts, struggles, and joys.
Analyzing her posts, it becomes evident that Yasmin, like many teenagers, experienced emotional highs and lows. In some tweets, she mentioned feeling sad and discouraged, while others indicated more severe thoughts, including mentions of suicide. However, her daily life did not raise major concerns, and her family believed everything was under control.
Yasmin’s Premonitions
In the early hours of June 9, 2019, just hours before her death, Yasmin posted something on Twitter that, at first glance, seemed like an innocent comment but later became a clear sign that she sensed something was wrong.
She wrote that she was going to meet a boy and had a bad feeling. Jokingly, she even said: “If I disappear or die, you already know who it was.” This phrase, which now sounds like a cry for help, was ignored at the time.
Despite this bad feeling, Yasmin decided to go ahead with the meeting. She informed her parents that she was attending an event in the city and left, not imagining that it would be the last time she would see her family.
The Meeting
Yasmin met up with a 17-year-old boy she had recently gotten to know. He suggested meeting in a public place but later claimed to have forgotten his wallet at home, asking her to accompany him there. Reluctantly, but without suspecting danger, Yasmin agreed.
The boy lived with his mother, who was absent that day. Taking advantage of this, he carried out a cruel plan he had already premeditated. Inside the house, he convinced Yasmin to enter the bathroom, where he brutally attacked her. He applied a chokehold, rendering her unconscious, and then took her life. The act itself was monstrous, but what he did afterward went beyond any limits of human comprehension.
Coldness and Cruelty
After killing Yasmin, the boy dismembered her body in the bathroom of the house. With chilling detachment, he separated the limbs from the torso. Later, he confessed to keeping the torso at home as a kind of “trophy” while scattering the other body parts in different locations around the city to hinder the investigation.
One of the most disturbing details was how he treated the crime as something mundane. He carried parts of Yasmin’s body in a backpack and took a bus to dispose of them in remote areas. Throughout the process, he remained calm and indifferent, as if it were just another routine activity.
The Parents’ Reaction
That night, when Yasmin did not return home, her parents began to worry. Yasmin always informed them if she would be late, so her sudden absence raised alarm. After a few hours of searching, they discovered she had gone out with the boy and relayed this information to the police.
When interrogated, the boy initially denied any involvement, claiming Yasmin had taken a bus home after their meeting. He even posted messages on social media expressing concern over her disappearance, pretending to be supportive of her family. However, the investigation soon revealed his role in the crime.
Details of the Crime
Under police pressure, the boy confessed to the crime without hesitation. He stated that he killed Yasmin because he wanted to know “what it was like to take someone’s life.” His motivation, devoid of logic or empathy, shocked not only the investigators but the entire society.
He detailed the murder and dismemberment with a coldness that left the police stunned. He showed no remorse, describing the acts as natural and even trivial. In his confession, he led investigators to the locations where he had disposed of Yasmin’s remains, reinforcing the extent of his indifference.
The Accomplice Girlfriend
The day after the crime, the boy told his 17-year-old girlfriend everything. He took her to one of the locations where he had discarded parts of Yasmin’s body and told her that if she didn’t cooperate, he would do the same to her. The girl helped discard some remains in a lake but later claimed she acted under threat.
Even so, the police considered her active participation in the crime and treated her as an accomplice. She was sentenced to a period of detention for her involvement, although she claimed fear of her boyfriend.
Legal Consequences
As minors, both were judged according to the Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA). The killer was sentenced to a maximum of three years in a juvenile detention center, which sparked outrage among the population due to the brutality of the crime. His girlfriend also received a detention sentence for her complicity.
Yasmin Silva Nery’s story is painful and shocking but also offers valuable lessons about safety, trust, and the dangers that may be closer than we imagine. May her memory serve as a reminder that we need to pay attention to the signs and prioritize our safety always.
