BUNNELL, Fla. — A 20-year-old Palm Coast woman has been arrested after Flagler County Sheriff’s Office investigators say she killed her newborn shortly after giving birth at home.
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said Anne Mae Demegillo, 20, was taken into custody Friday afternoon following an investigation into the death of an infant.
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According to the sheriff’s office, the Flagler County Emergency Communications Center received a call around 4 a.m. Friday, requesting a welfare check on Demegillo. The caller told dispatchers Demegillo had sent messages saying she had secretly been pregnant and unexpectedly gave birth at home. The message indicated the baby had been born alive and crying, but that Demegillo had “done something” to the infant.
FCSO Deputies responded to the home and spoke with Demegillo, who told them “she was not sure she was pregnant but began experiencing severe abdominal pain around 3 a.m. Thursday, March 5.” She told deputies she later delivered the child in her bathroom toilet.
Demegillo told deputies she believed the infant was deceased and hid the baby in a duffel bag in her closet before continuing her normal routine, the sheriff’s office said.
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Investigators said when Demegillo later returned home, she buried the infant in a shallow grave in her backyard.
Authorities said she did not contact emergency services at any point.
After an investigation, detectives determined Demegillo “knowingly and purposefully allowed the newborn to drown in the toilet.”
Demegillo was arrested and has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child.
The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office at 386-313-4911.
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