ORLANDO, Fla. – Three infants found abandoned years apart at an Orlando apartment complex come from the same parents, according to a DNA test requested by the Orlando police detectives investigating the cases, and now investigators are using genealogy in an attempt to identify the mother and father.
The most recent infant was found in July at the Willow Key Apartments on Arnold Palmer Drive. The 1-day-old baby boy was found wrapped in a T-shirt on a doorstep, police said.
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A note found with the baby said the mother left him because she was in fear of the child’s father, according to police.
The baby was healthy and taken to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children.
In October 2017, a baby girl was found with a note in the stairwell at the Willow Key Apartments. The note asked whoever found the newborn to take her to a fire station or safe haven drop-off location, according to police.
The baby was placed into foster care, according to DCF.
Orlando police have not provided details about the third case in 2016 where a baby was abandoned. According to News 6 records, in 2016 a baby boy was found wrapped in a blanket on the back porch of an apartment at Buena Vista Point Apartments. It’s unclear if that case is related.
After the third baby was abandoned in July, an Orlando police detective submitted DNA from the infants and learned all three children share the same mother and father, according to a letter from the detective to Orlando police Chief Orlando Rolon requesting funds for a genealogy analysis to identify the parents.
In the March 20 letter, the detective explained several familial matches were also found through DNA testing.
“Based on the egregious and neglectful behavior of the parent(s), and the bizarre facts of this case, unlike any other documented case, it is imperative to conduct a well-being check of all involved parties,” the detective wrote.
The detective requested the $2,500 for the genealogy analysis from United Data Connect-- a Denver-based genealogy lab-- be fast-tracked to identify the parents. Rolon approved the funds.
On Monday, the chief requested $5,000 from Orlando’s Law Enforcement Trust Fund, because the price of the genealogy was doubled “as there may be unanticipated expenses that arise later,” according to the request.
Under Florida law, newborn infants seven days old or younger can be surrendered at a hospital, emergency medical services station or fire station. Parents terminate their parental rights when the baby is surrendered.
The process is anonymous and the parents will not face any legal repercussions. Babies who are surrendered under the safe haven law are turned over to a child-placing agency.