LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA) — The Lakeland Police Department said a woman has been charged after a baby was found in a Lakeland dumpster last week.
Preliminary findings from the medical examiner’s office said the infant was full-term and the results do not indicate homicide or foul play caused by the infant’s death. The report said the baby had a severe brain deformity and never took a breath.
Police said a woman came to the police station to speak with detectives after the department released photos of people believed to have information related to the case.
The woman admitted giving birth alone outside her home during the early morning hours of May 10. She told detectives that she was unaware she was pregnant before giving birth and that she only had minor symptoms and believed she was just getting sick.
The woman said she did not go to the hospital afterward because she was in the country illegally and didn’t want to get in trouble. She also said she didn’t have money to pay the medical expenses.
Police said the woman then admitted to putting the infant’s remains in the dumpster that same evening.
The woman was later charged with storage, preservation and transportation of human remains, the police department said.
Lakeland police said DNA was collected from the woman to compare with the deceased infant’s.
The Department of Homeland Security was contacted regarding the woman’s immigration status, police said.
The case remains open and active, according to Lakeland police.
