Mother arrested after dead newborn found in garbage bin behind Alabama convenience store

DECATUR, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama woman is being held on a $200,000 bond after the body of her newborn baby was found inside a garbage bin behind a convenience store, police said.

A concerned family member asked police in Decatur on Monday to do a wellness check on 36-year-old Cindy Nicole Crow, believed to be eight months pregnant. The relative told authorities she believed Crow had given birth but was concerned about where the baby was, news outlets reported.

“As the investigation progressed, evidence was obtained that confirmed Crow had been pregnant as early as February 2023 and had recently given birth. However, her newborn baby was unaccounted for,” police said in a statement.

During the investigation, police said they received information that the garbage bin at Wally World Mini Mart should be searched. When investigators arrived Tuesday, they found a dead newborn girl inside a trash bag in the bin on the store’s property under several other bags of trash.

The infant’s corpse was transported to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences in Huntsville for an autopsy to help determine the cause of death.

On Wednesday, investigators obtained a felony warrant for Crow’s arrest. She was transported to the Morgan County Jail on a charge of abuse of a corpse. Jail records do not show whether she has an attorney who could speak on her behalf.

Additional charges are possible, authorities said.