The mother of a newborn found dead in a Riverside dumpster 37 years ago was arrested this week after a breakthrough in the cold case due to DNA evidence.
In October 1987, a man was combing through a Riverside dumpster when he discovered the body of newborn baby. Riverside County officials at the time ruled the death a homicide, but detectives were unable to identify any suspects in the baby's death, according to the Riverside Police Department. But now, almost 37 years, authorities say a breakthrough in the cold case from a new DNA analysis has helped detectives identify and arrest the baby's mother, Melissa Jean Allen Avila, 55.
She was 19 in October 1987, when the baby was found dead, police said. Avila was recently apprehended in North Carolina and extradited this month to Riverside County, where she was booked on suspicion of murder. She is being held in lieu of a $1.1-million bail. Detectives said there was no evidence the baby's father had any link to the case.
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