Police: Mother Says She Buried Newborn to Hide Pregnancy
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ROCK HILL, SC — Police have arrested a Rock Hill mother after they say she admitted to burying her newborn in her back yard.
Tara Ostrowski faces a charge of unlawful conduct toward a child. More charges could come as the investigation continues.
Those who lived with Ostrowski were clearly overwhelmed Wednesday when WCCB Charlotte showed up to check in, demanding reporters to leave.
Betty Jenkins walked with Ostrowski often. The former nurse is just piecing together what happened.
“We didn’t even know she was pregnant or anything,” said Jenkins. “She didn’t look pregnant or anything.”
It was May 18 when police say Ostrowski gave birth to a baby boy inside her Bailey Ave. home.
Arrest warrants say the mother admits the child stopped breathing and lived just six to eight minutes. Then, she told officers she buried him in the back yard to hide the pregnancy from her husband and family.
Reports say an anonymous informant reached out to authorities to inform police that Ostrowski told them she had a baby and handed it over to someone else to take it to a safe haven location.
Officers say they found no record and reached out to the mother, who admitted to burying the baby.
On May 28, records show investigators exhumed the baby’s body. Autopsy results came back this week.
How the child died, coroners say isn’t clear. They say he had hydrocodone and methamphetamine in his system. The mother admitted to taking those drugs while pregnant. That was enough to charge her with unlawful conduct toward a child.
She is in jail Wednesday with no bond. A county solicitor will set her next bond hearing.
