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Alexis Avila
A Hobbs, New Mexico woman has been charged with attempted murder and child abuse after she confessed to leaving her newborn child in a dumpster.
In a press conference by the Hobbs Police Department, HPD thanked three people who said they were searching for valuables in the dumpster when they discovered the infant and called 911. The child was transported to a local hospital and then taken to Lubbock for further treatment. The infant is listed in stable condition.
The suspect, 18-year-old Alexis Avila of Hobbs, confessed to giving birth to the child, wrapping the newborn in trash bags and abandoning it in a dumpster behind Rig Outfitters and Home Store in Hobbs
According HPD, officers responded to call of a newborn being located in a dumpster. Upon arrival, officers found two men and one woman, who was holding the baby in a pickup truck behind a shopping strip.
"The baby was wrapped in a bath towel and was dirty and wet and had dried blood on him with the umbilical cord still attached," according to Hobbs Police Interim Chief August Fons. "The woman in the group held the baby, trying to keep him warm, while one of the men in the group called 911."
The newborn was taken to Covenant Health Hobbs hospital by the local EMS and subsequently transported to a Covenant in Lubbock for further pediatric treatment.
Investigators were able to retrieve surveillance video and later locate the suspect vehicle. The video showed a woman throwing what appeared to be a trash bag into the dumpster about 2 p.m. The baby was abandoned and found about six hours later.
Avila was interviewed and confessed to giving birth to the child at another location and then placing the baby in the dumpster. She told police she didn't realize she was pregnant until Jan. 6, when she sought medical treatment for stomach pains. She said on Jan. 7, she unexpectedly gave birth and panicked, and drove around before throwing the trash bags containing the newborn in a green dumpster.
Search warrants for Avilla’s car and her family’s home turned up blood evidence, clothing and a towel.
She was booked on a charge of attempted first-degree murder or in the alternative felony child abuse. The final charge will be determined during an upcoming preliminary hearing.