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A 19-year-old mother has been charged with murder after her 4-month-old daughter was found dead inside a South Los Angeles dumpster, with investigators still working to determine what caused the baby’s death.
Takiyah Rochelle Babers was charged Thursday with one count of murder and one felony count of assault on a child causing death, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Babers is being held on $2 million bail. Her arraignment was postponed Thursday and she did not enter a plea. Her next court hearing is scheduled for Oct. 30.
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The charges came days after the infant, identified as Luna Babers, was discovered in a trash bin near the Pueblo Del Rio housing project.
Newton Division officers responded around 10:30 p.m. Monday to the 5200 block of Alba Street after a radio call reporting a “death investigation.” Inside the container, officers found the baby unresponsive.
Los Angeles firefighters and paramedics transported her to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Authorities said the infant had been left there within the previous 24 hours.
Investigators have yet to determine Luna’s cause of death.
The case has left the baby’s family reeling. Luna had been cared for by her grandmother, Laura Lacy, and Lacy’s partner, Herman Johnson.
On Monday evening, the couple dropped the baby at the apartment where Babers, Lacy’s foster daughter, had been staying.
The next morning, after learning Luna was missing, the grandparents rushed back to the neighborhood. They soon received the news that the infant had died.
Lacy has alleged that Babers intentionally killed her daughter.
“I think it was premeditated. She did this on purpose. No way you’re gonna call somebody to pick up your baby… and then you do this,” Lacy told ABC 7.
Police identified Babers as a suspect during the investigation and arrested her Tuesday.
She was taken into custody without incident and booked for murder, according to authorities.
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