An almost 35-year-old girl who was discovered in a barrel in a forested location has been positively recognized by state law enforcement officers. She was 5 years old.
As per the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), the Ware County Sheriff’s Office asked for help in a death investigation on December 21, 1988, following the discovery of a young girl’s body “in a container encased in concrete.” Her cause of death was unknown at the time, but the medical examiner concluded that she had been murdered.
Baby Jane Doe has been the name given to the girl.
Officials said on Monday that a 56-year-old Georgia woman was taken into custody on felony murder charges, almost 35 years after the death of her 5-year-old daughter.
According to the bureau’s announcement on Monday, the youngster was identified as Kenyatta Odom earlier this year. Without incident, authorities stated that her mother, Evelyn Odom, and her live-in boyfriend, 61-year-old Ulyster Sanders, were taken into custody on Thursday.
Using all available forensic testing, working with neighborhood social service agencies, local, state, and national media coverage, and cross-referencing the child’s case with several other missing children in Michigan, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and other states, investigators made a major effort to identify the child. None of these efforts succeeded in identifying her.
“Baby Jane Doe is no longer unnamed, is no longer unknown, the baby that was thrown out into a trash pile has been identified and we’re working to bring justice to her,” Seacrist stated.
The remains were located by a truck driver, according to a news release from the National Centre for Missing & Exploited Children. They were wrapped in a brown blanket and “concealed inside a duffel bag that was placed inside a TV console cabinet.”
The body was found at an unlawful dump site, according to GBI Special Agent Jason Seacrist during a press briefing on Monday, Nov. 13.
In order to definitively identify the young woman, who came to be known as Ware County Jane Doe, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation revived the case in 2019 and used genome sequencing. The GBI and Othram Inc. collaborated to compile the child’s genealogy profile. She was allegedly discovered with a diaper, white thermal trousers with a maroon bottom, and a white pyjama top with a horse emblem on it.
On November 1, agents from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation made the case before a grand jury. Evelyn Odom, 56, also known as Zmecca Luciana, Keke’s mother, and Ulyster Sanders, 61, Odom’s ex-boyfriend, were taken into custody by detectives on November 9 on suspicion of felony murder, first-degree cruelty to children, aggravated battery, family violence, concealing the death of another person, and conspiracy to conceal the death of another person.
When the girl passed away, Sanders and Evelyn Odom were in a romantic relationship. Officials did not specify the nature of their partnership at this time.
Greg Edwards, the district attorney for Dougherty, stated, “We think there is evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that will lead to justice being found for Kenyatta.”
