Couple arrested in La. 31 years after newborn girl’s death

JEFFERSON PARISH, La. (WVUE) - The parents of an infant killed in 1992 have been arrested after new DNA evidence surfaced, Louisiana State Police said Thursday (March 9).

State Police said on April 17, 1992, an infant girl’s body was found inside a garbage bag in Picayune, Miss.

A Picayune farmer discovered the body while feeding his animals when he pulled a trash bag from a dumpster. The baby’s body was inside a trash bag wrapped in a towel with other items of trash.

An autopsy revealed the baby was most likely born the morning of which it was found. It was also revealed the baby was around three weeks premature and lived a few minutes before being smothered.

The cause of death was determined to be perinatal asphyxia due to smothering, and the case was classified as a homicide. The case went cold.

The case was reopened by Picayune Police in Aug. 2021. Officials managed to track down where the baby was buried thanks to tips from past officers.

In April of that year, a special agent with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation offered to help in the case due to having a grant that would cover forensic genetic genealogy testing from evidence that was collected and preserved for over 29 years. With advanced DNA technology, officials were able to develop their first suspects.

Thanks to modern technology and DNA samples, Inga Johansen Carriere and Andrew K. Carriere II, both 50-year-olds from Louisiana, were booked with first-degree murder.

Louisiana State Police assisted in the investigation, as the suspects were both living in the state. DNA samples were obtained by LSP along with Picayune Police and MBI. It was determined the crime took place in Louisiana.

In March of 2023, warrants were issued for the Carrieres.

The two are being held at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Facility and await extradition to Mississippi upon their release from Louisiana. They are currently being held without bond.

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