Police: Body of baby found in Dumpster

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - The Marion County coroner is trying to determine how an infant found in a dumpster died.

Two people rummaging for scrap metal found the baby's body at the Ross-Gage Inc. building at 2323 North Illinois St.

The building is vacant, but it was recently used to host the annual Oranje art and music festival on September 19.

Metro homicide detectives arrived on the scene minutes after the gruesome discovery.

"We don't know what the cause of death is yet this could be you know a stillborn, it could be a victim of abuse, we don't know at this point," according to IMPD Sgt. Matthew Mount.

Investigators said the baby was buried under trash. And when detectives arrived they didn't want to disturb the scene and contaminate any possible evidence. So, they waited for the coroner to arrive.

Meantime, they contacted the company that owns the dumpster, Best Way Disposal.

While the operations manager Chris Roberts wouldn't talk on camera he did tell 24-Hour News 8 that his company dropped off the dumpster on September 10 and the dumpster hadn't been removed or emptied since.

Deputy Chief of Investigations William Benjamin is asking for help.

"Someone knows that a woman was pregnant and she is no longer pregnant so we are asking the help of the citizens in this situation out here because we do have what we believe to be a fetus or a very small baby."

Police aren't revealing much about the baby. They won't say the sex or race. They are waiting on an autopsy report from the coroner.

Police said the person currently leasing the building is in Texas.

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Indiana has had a Safe Haven Law since 2000.

The law allows a parent to abandon an infant, less than 45 days old, safely, legally, and confidentially at any hospital, fire or police station.

It also protects the parent from arrest or prosecution for abandonment.

The child is then puts into the custody of the Department of Child Services, which places the infant in a foster or pre-adoptive home.