Abducted infant found dead in Southern California dumpster
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Version 0 of 1. A 3-week-old baby girl reportedly abducted after her mother, father and uncle were shot has been discovered dead in a dumpster in Southern California. On Saturday evening, Long Beach police responded to a call about a shooting at a home in Long Beach, Calif. When officers arrived, they found the three adults, all with gunshot wounds. The 10-pound baby, later identified as Eliza Delacruz, was missing. Authorities did not issue an Amber Alert because there was no detailed description of the alleged shooter, abductor or vehicle, NBC Los Angeles reported. On Sunday morning, the baby’s body was found in a trash bin behind an Imperial Beach strip mall near San Diego, police told the Associated Press. The child’s cause of death has not yet been released. “The suspect who committed these horrific crimes” remains at-large, police said in a statement. “Long Beach Police will continue to aggressively investigate and pursue any lead to locate the suspect.” The gunshots were reported shortly before 6 p.m. local time Saturday at the Long Beach residence, less than 20 miles from Los Angeles, police said. The three gunshot victims were immediately taken to a local hospital. Police initially released a photo showing the baby in a white dress sleeping on a red blanket, asking the public for help in finding her. “The preliminary investigation leads detectives to believe an adult male suspect fled with the infant immediately after the shooting occurred,” the statement read. A man found the baby’s body inside a garbage bag about 1:30 a.m. local time Sunday while digging through a dumpster located nearly two hours from Long Beach, police said. The San Diego County Coroner’s office later confirmed it was Eliza Delacruz. The baby’s mother and uncle were in critical but stable condition Sunday night, and the baby’s father was treated and released earlier in the day. The father, who was reportedly walking with crutches, declined comment to KTLA-TV as he returned home from the hospital. “They’re afraid of a person coming back again, if they talk, and that they could be the victim of any retaliation,” Long Beach Police Lt. Lloyd Cox said, according to the station. “So they’re terrified.” Long Beach police spokeswoman Marlene Arrona told the AP investigators have not yet determined a motive, though they do not believe the shooting was random. They are searching for an adult male in connection with the crime. The suspect was described as a dark-skinned male, possibly Hispanic or African-American, according to the police statement. It’s still unclear whether the suspect is related to the child. Long Beach police have asked anyone with information to call the police department’s communications center at (562) 435-6711. Anonymous tips can be placed by calling 1-800-222-8477 or texting TIPLA plus the tip to 274637. Cox told reporters the case “just doesn’t seem normal.” “It’s not something we see,” he said. “And so that makes us think it’s specific and targeted to this family for some reason. We just don’t know why.” |