THIS is the selfie that has left an entire country in shock as sick teens posed next to a weeping 92-year-old woman after robbing her.
The masked trio took the twisted snap in front of a mirror while their distressed victim was seen hunched on her bed with her hands tied.
The horrifying moment, captured by the criminals themselves, was posted on social media like a trophy.
The crime took place in the early hours of January 17 in the Vicente Lopez neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
A band of criminals illegally entered the residence of the elderly lady, silenced her, physically assaulted her, and secured her to her bed as they searched her home for money and precious items, according to a report from the local news source El Observador.
They stole wedding rings, a gold chain, an iPhone, and 50,000 pesos, which is around £45.
But before making their escape, they stopped to take a chilling memento — a selfie, with their terrified victim caught in the frame.
Hours later, they struck again in a different neighbourhood, targeting another woman.
This time, they took a 32-inch television before fleeing in a Volkswagen Gol Trend, the same car used in their first attack.
Their downfall came from the very photo they flaunted.
Law enforcement officers scanning social media platforms came across a photograph, accompanied by a troubling caption – “the spark, one gone” – set against the backdrop of an electronic dance melody.
“It is disgusting,” said one investigator, horrified by the criminals’ brazen display.
Through surveillance footage, witness testimonies, and social media analysis, police identified the gang.
Several raids were carried out in the northern suburbs of Buenos Aires, leading to their capture.
Prosecutor Alejandro Guevara has requested preventive detention and a swift trial for the suspects — three minors and a 26-year-old adult.
All four have been charged with two counts of aggravated robbery.
Elsewhere in Paraguay, a “cradle snatcher” who posed as a nurse was caught on video fleeing from hospital with a stolen baby wrapped in her arms.
Natalia Edith González, 39, was apprehended for reportedly snatching the infant from a hospital in Paraguay, and she was just a mere 50 meters away from successfully crossing the Argentine border with the baby.
It’s believed she was on the hunt for an infant to steal after lying to her family – including her partner – about being pregnant, and identified a target after scouring three hospitals.
Her attempt to abduct the day-old baby was caught on CCTV inside the Barrio Obrero Public Hospital in the Paraguayan capital Asunción.
The suspect, an Argentine national, was reportedly posing as a nurse and wearing a face mask when the one-day-old baby was taken.
