Dead newborn found abandoned next to strawberry field with umbilical cord still attached

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KSBW) — Investigators are looking for a vehicle they believe was involved in leaving a dead newborn on the side of a road in California.

The community has created a growing memorial for the baby, who was found dead early Saturday morning near a strawberry field in Monterey County.

A suspect vehicle was identified as a beige-colored 2010 Mercury Milan with license plate 6HCR883.

“The detectives have been able to gather some pretty significant information during their investigations. And that, coupled with the use of the Flock camera system, led them to identify a vehicle that we are confident was involved in this incident,” Andres Rosas, spokesperson for the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, said.

Investigators said the suspect might not be the car’s registered owner, making the investigation more difficult.

“If somebody is looking at these photographs and thinking to themselves, ‘You know, I did see that vehicle at a certain location,’ please contact us. That little bit of information is very, very important to our investigation. And the goal here is to find the people that are responsible for leaving this baby on the side of the road,” Rosas said.

Investigators said autopsy results for the newborn are still pending, so it is unknown if the baby was alive or stillborn when it was abandoned. Officials said the baby still had its umbilical cord attached.

“Again, we’re trying to determine the specifics on what this child went through and also trying to determine who did this, who’s responsible for it, and why this happened,” Rosas said.