A childhood friend killed her and kidnapped her newborn daughter: Heidi Broussard's story of betrayal (13 photos)

Eight days after the disappearance of Heidi Broussard and her newborn daughter, FBI agents stopped a man outside a Target store. He was carrying baby formula and clothes. When they showed him a missing persons poster with photos of the missing, he said, "That's the baby I have at home." Thus ended the hunt for the killer. The killer turned out to be Heidi's best friend—a woman who had faked pregnancy for nine months to take someone else's child.





Morning of December 12th

Heidi Elizabeth Broussard was born on June 15, 1986, in Cameron, Louisiana. By the age of thirty-three, she had moved to Austin, Texas. She was accompanied by her partner, Shane Carey, a six-year-old son, Silas, and their long-awaited daughter, Margot, born on November 26, 2019. Heidi worked at Cracker Barrel, a chain of American-style fast food restaurants popular in the southern United States. She was also training to become a veterinary technician. Colleagues described her as someone who never turns away anyone in need.

On the morning of December 12, 2019, Heidi dropped Silas off at Cowan Elementary School as usual. She returned home—and disappeared. Along with three-week-old Margot.



Heidi Broussard shortly before the birth of her daughter

Shane Carey discovered the empty apartment a few hours later. Everything the baby needed was still there: diapers, formula, and a car seat. Heidi's phone was unresponsive. She couldn't have left like that, without her baby's things—everyone who knew her understood that. Carey called the police.





Magen Fieramusca—Heidi's best friend, who turned out to be her killer

One of the first people the search party volunteers called was Magen Fieramusca—Heidi's best friend. Tim Miller, founder of the Texas Equusearch search party, later said: Fieramusca answered the phone immediately. She cried, thanked her for her work, and promised to help. He trusted her immediately. Those around her saw her as a model of devotion and support.

Shane Carey under suspicion

Initially, investigators focused on Shane Carey. According to neighbors, screaming and arguing were heard coming from the apartment around 3:00 PM that day. During questioning, Carey faltered in his testimony. He initially claimed to have returned from work at 6:00 PM, then corrected himself – 2:00 PM. He refused to take a lie detector test. Friends of the couple said he had recently been drinking more frequently and was becoming aggressive.



Heidi Broussard and her partner Shane Carey

After leaving the station, Carey went to the cell phone company to request a transcript of Heidi's calls. He was refused. They placed him under surveillance, but no direct evidence was found.



Heidi and Shane seemed like a happy couple, but not everything was smooth sailing in their lives.

Meanwhile, hundreds of volunteers combed Austin and the surrounding areas: forests, rivers, industrial zones. Dog handlers with dogs, helicopters, police patrols of courtyards. Heidi and Margot seemed to disappear—no one saw them.

A friend with an apartment key

Heidi and Magen Fieramusca met at the Texas Bible Institute in Columbus, Texas. It happened about ten years ago—not twenty, as some media outlets reported. Magen lived in the Houston suburbs but often visited Austin. She accompanied Heidi to her prenatal appointments. And after Margot's birth, she came back to help. Heidi and Shane trusted their friend so much that they gave her the key to their apartment. She never returned it.



Heidi Broussard and Magen Fieramusca—years of friendship that ended in betrayal

When Heidi announced her pregnancy, Magen immediately announced that she was also expecting. Their due dates were almost the same. The friends shared their feelings, discussed the birth, and made plans. According to Shane, they both even talked about giving birth on the same day. No one ever doubted it.



Heidi Broussard with her two-week-old daughter, Margot

In reality, Magen wasn't pregnant—or had lost the baby earlier; the investigation never established this. She wore a fake belly and feigned morning sickness. She convinced her ex-boyfriend, Christopher Green, with whom she lived, that she would soon be the mother of his child. In early December, Heidi told Shane: Magen had given birth to a girl. He hadn't seen any photos.

What motivated Magen Fieramusca

FBI analysts described the motive as "maternal desire"—an obsessive desire to have a child. Forensic psychologist Gary Bruzzato, a specialist in psychotic disorders and violence, offered another explanation: pathological envy. Magen didn't just want a child—she wanted this particular child, from a friend she envied. In the hospital after Margot Fieramusca's birth, she behaved strangely: she asked to hold the girl even when her grandfather first arrived.



Margot Carey—the girl was found alive and well in Fieramusca's home

The plan was simple and terrifying: wait for Heidi to give birth—kill Margot—take her and pass her off as his own daughter. Investigators later discovered that Magen was certain she wouldn't be found.

Murder and Escape

On December 12, 2019, Magen arrived at Heidi's apartment in South Austin. She had a key. Heidi opened the door to the person she trusted most. Fieramusca strangled her friend with a dog leash. She placed the body in the trunk of her car, which she parked out of sight from the street. She took Margot and drove to Houston, where she introduced the girl to Christopher Green as their newborn daughter.

That same evening, Magen Googled "Reasons for an Amber Alert"—the U.S. child abduction alert system—and "Is there an Amber Alert in Austin?" Investigators requested her account information. It turned out that between November 11 and December 18, 2019, she Googled the name Heidi Broussard at least 162 times.



The house on Bo Jack Street in Harris County – where Fieramusca hid with Margot

The FBI, in conjunction with the Texas Department of Public Safety, placed the house under surveillance on December 19. A helicopter spotted a car parked in the yard, hidden from view. Agents followed Christopher Green as he went to a Target store and bought baby clothes and formula. Upon leaving, they showed him a missing persons poster with photos. Green looked at it and said, "That's the child who lives at my house."

A Gruesome Discovery

Police cordoned off the house on Bo Jack Street on December 20th, eight days after her disappearance. Inside, they found Margot: alive, healthy, and well-groomed. Fieramusca had already started calling her Luna. Heidi's body was in the trunk of a car in the yard.



The car was parked in the yard—Heidi's body was found in the trunk.

Fieramusca was arrested. During questioning, she said she had gone to the beach with her cousin on the day of her disappearance. When investigators asked her to name the maternity hospital where she supposedly gave birth, she couldn't remember it.

Sentence

On February 2, 2023, Magen Fieramusca, then 37, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. The charge of capital murder was dropped as part of a plea bargain, avoiding the death penalty and ending the possibility of appeals. Judge Selena Alvarenga sentenced her to 55 years in prison. Fieramusca declined to appeal.



Magen Fieramusca in the courtroom — she pleaded guilty on February 2, 2023.

"You deprived an innocent child of the opportunity to grow up with her mother," the judge said in the courtroom. Heidi's mother, Tammy Broussard, traveled from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to the hearing. "Heidi's embrace was strong and full of love. She loved beyond measure and never gave up," she told the court. Margot Carey returned to her father and brother.



Shane Carey with his daughter Margot and her father – the family is reunited

The Film and Unresolved Questions

On September 23, 2023, the film "Stolen Baby: The Murder of Heidi Broussard" was released on Lifetime. Starring Emily Osment and Anna Hopkins, the film recreates the events of December 2019 and asks a difficult question: how could someone have spent years preparing for such a crime?



Still from the film "Stolen Child: The Murder of Heidi Broussard," Lifetime, 2023

Heidi Broussard's story isn't just a crime story. Magen knew all her secrets: she held Margot in her arms at the maternity hospital and had a key to the house. And it was this trust that became the weapon. Now Margot is growing up without a mother. And Magen Fieramusca won't be released until 2050—if at all.

Do you think it was possible to notice something amiss in Magen's behavior long before the tragedy? Have you ever experienced betrayal from those you trusted 100%? Share your thoughts in the comments.