'Selena: The Real Story': Yolanda, Selena's killer and best friend, had a shrine dedicated to Tejano superstar
Yolanda Saldívar was a bastion of kindness to anyone that encountered her. She was a nurse who cared for the ill and raised her brother’s children like her own. But for Yolanda, this was never enough. And somewhere in the middle of all of that lies the beginning of her obsession.
'Selena: The Real Story' details the journey of the Tejano superstar's killer from a regular fan to a murderer.
Yolanda’s first encounter with Selena came when she saw the singer perform and instantly felt drawn to the star. She found herself wanting more and more to be a part of Selena’s world and convinced the Quintanillas to let her start an official fan club for the young star, soon becoming indispensable to Selena.
When Selena opened up her own fashion boutique, Yolanda was her obvious choice as the business manager. As Selena’s fame continued to rise, Yolanda took over the singer’s daily schedule so that anyone who needed to see Selena would need to go through her - even Selena’s father. Yolanda’s control over Selena’s life had become absolute.
Trouble began to brew when the boutique staff noticed something wasn’t quite right with Yolanda. One employee found a shrine dedicated to Selena set up in Yolanda’s apartment, the first indication anyone had of Yolanda’s deep obsession with the singer.
When Selena confronted Yolanda about her treatment of the staff at the boutique she dismissed the rumors and instead gifted Selena a $3,000 Fabergé ring, which Selena saw as a symbol of their eternal friendship. Yolanda, as 'Selena: The Real Story' reveals, was a master of manipulation when it came to the young star.
It wasn’t long before the charade fell apart. Abraham Quintanilla, Selena's father who never trusted Yolanda, uncovered evidence of her crimes including stealing money from Selena’s fan club and boutique as well as a previous employer and using it to buy the ring she gifted her.
Several confrontations ensued as Yolanda’s lies unraveled one after the other. But each time, she manipulated Selena into believing her again. During their final argument, Yolanda claimed she was raped and beaten in Mexico, but when Selena took her to the hospital she realized she had been lied to - yet again. Their confrontation soon continued and ended with Yolanda shooting Selena as she tried desperately to flee.
To this day, no one really knows why Yolanda made the choice she did. Some believe it was an ill-fated attraction, while others believe it was a crime of passion.
Yolanda herself has never answered the question directly, though she has added to the lore of the tragedy in several separate interviews claiming Selena was pregnant when she killed her, and later insisting she was trying to stage a robbery and assault so that she would not get sent to jail or be asked to pay back the nearly $200,000 she stole.
Regardless of the true reasons behind her actions, one thing is clear: Yolanda Saldívar revels in the attention. And when one considers her discontentment with her life that put her on the path to becoming a part of Selena’s world, it all seems to make perfect sense.