DOWNEY – A mere week after a potential baby scandal involving Councilman Luis Marquez came to light, the child’s mother has come forward with documents confirming that the alleged out-of-wedlock child is indeed his. 

Both council member Marquez and his wife, city council hopeful Alma Marquez, have been in the center of controversy since news broke that Marquez may have fathered a child during an affair, and that he and his wife both may have used their political position to intimidate and quiet the mother during the current election. 

Up to this point, Maribel Zavala, who claims to have had an extramarital relationship with Marquez, has been extraordinarily silent about the situation concerning her child, even after the Downey Patriot published an article and explanation of publication last week.

However, Zavala has now come forward with official court documents filed with the Superior Court of Los Angeles, as well as the official results of the court mandated paternity test. 

The documents, provided to the Downey Patriot by Zavala, appear to confirm that Marquez is the father of Zavala’s child. 

Zavala released a statement along with the documents, saying: 

“It is with a sad heart that I publicly knowledge and affirm that I have been involved with Downey City Council Member Luis Marquez and that we had a son together. We are currently in legal proceedings to establish paternity, custody, and child support. 

“At the time of our relationship, Mr. Marquez assured me he was divorced. When I informed him that I was pregnant, he was happy but asked that I keep my pregnancy discreet due to his political position. He said he would recognize our son after his term in the Downey city council was over. Soon afterwards, I found out Luis was still married to Alma Marquez, but he insisted that they were separated. 

“By the time our son was born, I no longer had a relationship with Luis, but he had a relationship with our son for a whole year until Alma found out about our child. Afterwards, Luis ceased all emotional and financial support for our son.

“In June of this year, Luis requested that I meet with them at their home to discuss our family situation; I agreed but requested a public location. At the meeting, Alma Marquez shared that her husband was planning to run for a local water board, she was going to run for Downey City Council, and it was my best interest to remain silent about our child. 

“I decline their offer and asked both that Luis legally acknowledges that he is the father of our son as a responsible father not as a negligent one. I was then intimidated and threaten that bad things will happen to me and my son and that I would regret it if I go public to acknowledge Luis as the father of my son. 

“After the meeting, I did not hear from Luis and he has not seen our son for over six months now. I decided to put the intimidation and fear aside and do what is right for my child and moved forward with legal proceedings. After I filed, Luis got served with two months of anticipation and he still did not file a response nor attended family mediation. 

“On 10/04/2016 at our court hearing, Luis stated that he was not sure he was the father and the judge ordered a paternity test. I personally schedule the paternity test for the following day, and he did not show up therefore it had to be rescheduled. He finally took the paternity test on 10/10/2016.

“The test results confirmed he is the father of my son. Unfortunately, he continues to deny our son believing that I would stay quiet as he and his wife Alma Marquez asked me to.

“I share this personal story because it is a shame that an elected official is using his public office not only for personal gain, but also to intimidate the mother of his child. I am sad that I had to take the legal route to defend our son, who is the only victim here neglected by Luis for so long.”