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Baby cut from slain mother's womb opened his eyes when his dad held him

The baby remains hospitalized on life support as family and friends pray for a miracle.

A baby, who Chicago authorities said was cut from his mother's womb after she was murdered, opened his eyes when the child's father visited in the hospital, according to family representatives. 

Photos of the heartwarming moment were shared on social media by a student pastor assisting the family and showed the young child being held by his father, Yiovanni Lopez, on Sunday. 

Cecilia Garcia told CNN they were praying and praying "and he opened his eyes, and his dad said, 'Oh my God, he opened his eyes!" She added on Facebook that they're praying for a miracle. 

Another family spokesperson, Emma Lozano, told PEOPLE that the child remains on life support in grave condition at the hospital. The family right now is focusing on being introduced to their baby, according to Lozano, a pastor with Lincoln United Methodist Church in Chicago.  

A funeral for the baby's mother, 19-year-old Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, is scheduled for Saturday morning. 

Two women, 46-year-old Clarisa Figueroa and her 24-year-old daughter Desiree Figueroa, are charged with murder in Ochoa-Lopez's death. Police found Ochoa-Lopez's body last Thursday outside Clarisa Figueroa's Chicago home.  

Prosecutors said Friday that Clarisa Figueroa plotted for months to get a newborn before she and her daughter strangled Ochoa-Lopez on April 23 and cut her baby from her womb. 

Credit: Chicago Police
Chicago authorities say 19-year-old Marlen Ochoa-Lopez was murdered and had her baby cut from her womb.

Chicago police said Clarisa Figueroa then called 911 and reported that she had given birth to a baby who wasn't breathing. Paramedics took her and the child to a suburban Chicago hospital. 

The hospital's handling of the case has raised questions. 

The Chicago Police Department and the state's Department of Children and Family Services both said last weekend that staff at the hospital did not alert them after determining that Figueroa had not just given birth to the gravely ill newborn.  

A state agency revealed Tuesday that the hospital is being investigated. 

Clarisa Figueroa's boyfriend, Piotr Bobak, is also charged in connection with the case for concealment of a homicide. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Credit: AP
This combination of booking photos provided by the Chicago Police Department on Thursday, May 16, 2019 shows from left, Pioter Bobak, 40; Clarisa Figueroa, 46; and Desiree Figueroa, 24.

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