Mexico City: Mexico's "Little old lady killer," a female ex-wrestler who strangled and beat to death 11 elderly women in their homes after offering them domestic help, was sentenced to life in prison on Monday.

Juana Barraza, dubbed "Mataviejitas" in Spanish, murdered at least 11 people in the capital since 2000 and may have killed close to 40 in total, making her one of the worst serial killers in Mexico's recent history.

The muscular, ginger-haired former wrestler would cruise the streets of Mexico City, sometimes dressed up as a nurse, and win the confidence of frail old women by offering to wash their clothes or help with other household chores.

Once in their homes, she would strangle her victims with items like women's tights, a curtain cord or a phone cable, or bludgeon them to death with household objects.