Authorities in California are searching for a teenager accused of killing a baby last month that was conceived as a result of her father’s sexual abuse, law enforcement officials said.
Officials with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office said they were also searching for the 14-year-old’s father, Sergio Galvez Perez, who is believed to be concealing the teen.
Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto referred to the newborn Tuesday as “Baby Angelita.”
During a briefing, Nieto described the teen as a victim of her father’s abuse and said a warrant was issued accusing her of murder.
A warrant was also issued for Galvez Perez, 38, on charges of incest, unlawful sexual intercourse, lewd or lascivious acts with a minor and other crimes.
The teen’s mother, Ofelia Garcia Ortega, was taken into custody on suspicion of child endangerment and released on bail, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
Garcia Ortega could not be reached for comment, and it was not immediately clear whether she has a lawyer to speak on her behalf.
The body of Angelita was discovered on a road roughly 20 miles north of Monterey on the morning of Aug. 1, the sheriff’s office said. Authorities believe the 14-year-old gave birth there and left the baby.
A postmortem examination showed that the newborn had signs of a traumatic injury, the sheriff’s office said.
The sheriff’s office said that Flock, the automated license plate reader system that has come under fire across the United States, played a crucial role in helping investigators identify a vehicle linked to the murder investigation.
During the briefing, Nieto addressed Galvez Perez, whom he described as a musician, and told him to surrender.
“You need to turn yourself in to the Monterey County detectives or to a police officer, because really at the center of this is two children,” she said. “Baby Angelita who lost her life, and a 14-year-old child who is now the subject of serious allegations of involving the death of the baby.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. The hotline, run by the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN), can put you in contact with your local rape crisis center. You can also access RAINN’s online chat service at https://www.rainn.org/get-help.
