‘Baby Jane Doe’ found dead in York County river in 1992. Mom charged 29 years later.
In August 1992, a swimmer found a deceased newborn baby in the Catawba River between Rock Hill and Fort Mill, south of the North Carolina border at Lake Wylie.
The red-haired baby died from injuries after birth, York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson said. She was called “Baby Jane Doe” at the time on Aug. 12, 1992, because she was unidentified, Tolson said.
She was found floating in the water but did not die from drowning, officials said.
Now 29 years later, Tolson said at a news conference Tuesday the cold case was solved after a DNA match. Sheriff’s office deputies and prosecutors have charged the mother of the child with homicide by child abuse, Tolson said.
Stacy Michelle Costner Rabon, 48, of Rock Hill, was charged Tuesday morning, according to Tolson and jail records. The charge carries a prison sentence in South Carolina of 30 years to life for a conviction.
Tolson said the baby, later called ”Baby Angel Hope” as detectives worked the case for three decades, had been stabbed multiple times.
When found in 1992, the baby was hours old, Tolson said. The baby was wrapped in a sheet that was inside a plastic grocery bag, Tolson said.
Rabon “did not deny” the baby was hers when confronted by law enforcement, according to Tolson and an arrest warrant in the case obtained by The Herald.
The child was found near the U.S. 21 Catawba River bridge, Tolson said.
A DNA match between the baby and Rabon was made after Rabon was arrested on a distribution of drugs charge in 2019, Tolson said. DNA was collected from Rabon after her arrest, Tolson said.
Rabon’s DNA was sent to a national DNA database where it matched with evidence in the baby case from 1992, Tolson said.
Detectives did not give up on the case and now have enough evidence to charge Rabon. While the DNA match was the first clue to point them toward a suspect, Tolson said, more investigation was needed before Rabon could be charged.
“This child deserved our best,” Tolson said. “Maybe now she will be called Baby Angel Justice.”
Sheriff’s Office detective LaNelle Day said she and others worked the cold case and are proud to have been able to find enough evidence for an arrest.
Rabon remains in custody pending a first court appearance.
Check back for updates on this developing story.
This story was originally published August 17, 2021 at 2:32 PM with the headline "‘Baby Jane Doe’ found dead in York County river in 1992. Mom charged 29 years later.."
