Decades Old Case Closed In St. Augusta Infant’s Death

UNDATED (WJON News) -- A decades-old case has been closed by the Stearns County Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office says they have identified the parents of Baby Jane Doe and after further investigation have decided to close the case. On April 3rd, 1980, the sheriff's office responded to a call at what is now 250th Street, west of County Road 136 in St. Augusta for a report of a dead infant. Once on the scene, deputies found a deceased child, later identified as Baby Jane Doe, about five feet off the roadway.

An autopsy conducted the next day by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office could not determine the cause of death. In 2018, the sheriff's office along with the BCA exhumed the infant to obtain a DNA profile. In 2020, investigators contacted Parabon NanoLabs to assist in the case and aid in attempting to identify the parents. Then in 2021, the BCA examined DNA taken by the Medical Examiner's office during a previous autopsy of an adult female and in comparing it to Baby Jane Doe's DNA it was determined the deceased female was the infant's mother.

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Earlier this year, it was determined that the infant's father could be one of three men. The Sheriff's Office collected DNA from one of the men who consented to the sample. The BCA determined there was enough evidence between the DNA from Baby Jane Doe, the mother, and the man to determine the man was the baby's father. In May and June of this year, deputies interviewed the father who was cooperative and denied any knowledge of the child. The Sheriff's Office says after completing interviews and other investigative efforts they have not been able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt a person responsible for the death of Baby Jane Doe and have closed the case.

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