Wisconsin – A Wisconsin woman was taken into custody last week and charged with hiding the corrpse of a chiId, a Class F felony under Wisconsin law, after the decomposing remains of her baby, Raine, were found in her apartment. Authorities say she remains in custody with a $50,000 bond set.
Police responded shortly after 1 a.m. to the apartmentsfollowing a call about an unusuaI, fouI odor coming from inside. When officers arrived, the parent was alone and initially told them the smeII was from old food. Investigators later said she told them, he has me hiding her in there, while pointing to a locked bedroom door. Inside, officers forced the door open and found the baby’s body in a large cardboard box in the center of the room, surrounded by fIies and maggots.
The medical examiner noted blunt force trauma to the 10-month-old child’s head, indicating a skull fracture consistent with blunt force injury. The official cause and manner of death are still pending. Police say the child was in an advanced state of decomposition and was beyond recognition.
The defendant’s statements to police were erratic and inconsistent. She claimed the baby’s father kiIIed their child several weeks before and threatened to put both of them in prison if she revealed what happened. She described being in a controlling domestic violence relationship and said she was forced to injure her child and hide the body. She also said she had no control over how she died.
During interviews, detectives noted she made incoherent remarks and appeared to be speaking to unseen individuals. She released bizarre statements such as “We went entirely too far, Shyana,” “My name is Brenndan, I killed your kid,” and repeated phrases like “you’re helping me plead insane.” At one point, she even made barking noises.
Describing what happened, the defendant claimed she was r-ped in there and forced to injure her child and hide the body. She alleged that people were going ‘in and out of her apartment r-ping her and stealing from her,’ the complaint adds.
A neighbor who declined to be named told reporters she never saw the parent with a baby and had noticed her spending considerable time outside her apartment in recent weeks. The neighbor said she told her it was too stinky inside and that she couldn’t stay in the apartment or use the restroom.
Given the mother’s confusing statements and apparent mental distress, a court commissioner ordered a competency examination during her initial court appearance, which took place earlier this week.
At this time investigators say they are not looking for additional suspects. The apartment was mostly empty, with only an air mattress and TV in one room; no evidence supports the presence of any other adult male, despite the woman’s claims involving the child’s father. Her bond was set at $50,000, and she is being held pending the completion of the competency evaluation.
Investigators continue to gather evidence and await the full results of the medical examiner’s report and mental health evaluation to determine the next steps in the case.