Takiyah Babers charged with murder after infant found in South LA dumpster

Takiyah Rochelle Babers, 19, has been charged with murder and felony assault on a child causing death following the death of her 4-month-old daughter, Luna Babers, in South Los Angeles.

The infant was discovered unresponsive in a dumpster near the Pueblo Del Rio housing project on the 5200 block of Alba Street. Emergency responders transported the baby to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Investigators are still working to determine the exact cause of death.

Babers is currently being held on $2 million bail. While her arraignment was postponed, her next court hearing is scheduled for October 30. An advocate for the suspect’s foster parents claimed that security footage from an apartment complex allegedly shows Babers throwing the child into the dumpster.

The infant had been under the care of her grandmother, Laura Lacy, and Lacy’s partner, Herman Johnson. The grandparents reported that they had dropped the baby off at the apartment where Babers was staying the night before the discovery. The community has since established a memorial at the site where the infant was found.