Mother arrested in cold case death of newborn girl found in California dumpster 37 years ago

The mother of a newborn baby discovered dead in a dumpster in California nearly 40 years ago has been arrested, accused of murder after she was identified using DNA technology. 

The newborn baby girl was found by a man rummaging for recyclables in a dumpster behind a business in the 5400 block of La Sierra Avenue in Riverside on Oct. 13, 1987, Riverside Police said. 

The baby’s death was ruled a homicide, and despite an investigation, “all leads were exhausted and a suspect was not identified,” police said in a release. 

The police department’s Homicide Cold Case Unit reopened the investigation in 2020. The department was aided by Season of Justice, a nonprofit that provides financial aid for investigative agencies and families to solve cold cases using DNA analysis and forensic genealogy. That funding allowed for DNA analysis to be conducted by Othram, a lab that specializes in forensic genetic genealogy.

Forensic evidence was submitted to Othram’s lab in Texas in November 2021 where scientists developed a DNA profile for the unknown infant, Othman said in its own news release. That profile was sent back to the police and from there investigators looked at potential relatives of the baby girl, ultimately leading to the identification of the baby’s mother: 55-year-old Melissa Jean Allen Avila.

Avila, who was 19 at the time of the child’s death, was located across the country in Shelby, North Carolina.

She was arrested on Aug. 5 in Shelby, North Carolina, and was extradited to Riverside County.

She was taken to the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Riverside on a first-degree murder charge. She made her first court appearance Wednesday, and was released following an agreement for supervised own recognizance release, online booking and court records show.

No plea has been entered in the case yet. NBC News has reached out to her attorney for comment.

She’s due back in court on September 9.

Authorities noted there’s no reason to believe the baby’s father had any criminal culpability in the infant’s death. 

“Thanks to the persistent efforts of our investigators and partners, this victim now has an identity, bringing resolution to the case,” Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez said in a statement.