A Florida woman accused of the death of her newborn infant was arrested on Friday, deputies said.
Anne Mae Demegillo, 20, was charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child.
According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, on Friday, at around 4 a.m., deputies received a call asking them to conduct a welfare check on a woman, who was identified as Demegillo.
Deputies said the caller told them that Demegillo sent them messages that she had been secretly pregnant and unexpecting gave birth at her home.
The messages between Demegillo and the caller indicated that the baby was born alive, but that she did something to the baby.
Following the call, deputies arrived at the home and met with Demegillo, who said she wasn’t sure she was pregnant, but felt severe abdominal pain at around 3 a.m. on Thursday. She told deputies that she delivered her child in her bathroom’s toilet.
After giving birth, Demegillo told deputies that she thought the newborn was deceased and hid it in a duffel bag in her closet. She then went to a theater performance in New Smyrna Beach, and when she got back to her house, she decided to bury the infant in her backyard.
During their investigation, detectives determined that Demegillo “knowingly and purposefully allowed the newborn to drown in the toilet.”
The sheriff released the following statement:
“This is a heartbreaking tragedy for our community, for the family involved, and an emotionally difficult case for our team,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “I want to remind our community, especially our expectant mothers: Florida law allows you to bring a child at birth to a local fire station, hospital or law enforcement agency and surrender the child. That is a much better solution than what we are investigating today—for everyone involved, but most importantly, the infant who was prevented from the life they deserve. May God bless this infant and hold and comfort the baby in his loving hands with the love the baby never received on earth.”
Florida’s Safe Haven Law allows parents who cannot take care of their newborns the chance to surrender them at a fire station, hospital or police station.
An investigation into the incident remains active.
