Alex’s mother passed away and he was abandoned by his father. An aunt and uncle were caring for him. In 2018, Alex’s brother, Josue, was found wandering completely alone in a nearby city and was sent to live at Casa Angelina for a few months while the authorities found a family for him. The judge gave custody to the same uncle and aunt. But living with these relatives was extremely harmful as they were physically abusive and often beat Josue up. They also verbally abused him and wouldn’t feed him. The authorities did a random checkup and found that Josue’s living conditions were awful and took him to the hospital. For a month he was treated at the hospital for his wounds and malnutrition. Meanwhile, Casa Angelina was preparing a permanent place for him to live. While doing a deeper investigation into Josue’s case, they discovered that Alex was being forced to work selling fruit and vegetables on the streets and in the markets. He was 12 years old and had never been to school. Shortly after, he was rescued and brought to live with Josue at Casa Angelina.