Iowa parents accused of drowning child moments after she was born in apartment
12/08/2022 11:34 am PST
FORT DODGE, Iowa (TCD) -- Two parents were arrested and charged after allegedly drowning their infant just moments after she was born in their home.
According to an affidavit, on Nov. 22, the Webster County Law Enforcement Center learned that 24-year-old Taylor Blaha had given birth to a baby at her home and buried her.
Blaha was interviewed and reportedly told a detective that she became aware of her pregnancy in April. The complaint alleges that Brandon Thoma was the father of the child, and he and Blaha already have a 2-year-old son together.
Blaha allegedly gave birth to the baby girl in the bathroom of her home on Central Avenue on Nov. 16. The complaint says the baby, Kayleen Lee Blaha, was "born alive, crying, moving its arms and legs, and opening her eyes allowing Blaha to see that Kayleen had brown eyes."
Blaha reportedly asked Thoma to give her methamphetamine for the pain.
She and Thoma allegedly "had no intentions of keeping the baby and planned to allow Blaha’s sister to adopt the baby."
However, once Kayleen was born, Blaha told the detective that she and Thoma became nervous that the baby’s crying would be heard by the neighbors.
In order to stop the baby’s crying, the complaint says Blaha and Thoma placed Kayleen in the bathtub and forced her under the water, killing her. Thoma allegedly put the newborn’s deceased body in a plastic storage container and wrapped it with trash bags.
According to a criminal complaint, Thoma told authorities he did not want law enforcement to take away their 2-year-old son if they learned the newborn had meth in her system.
The newborn’s body was buried in a rural area, and according to an affidavit, her remains were eventually found.
Upon further investigation of Blaha and Thoma’s electronic devices, police said they learned Blaha tried to cause a miscarriage, but her attempts were unsuccessful.
After the birth of the baby, Blaha and Thoma both told detectives that Thoma cut the umbilical cord with a pair of scissors. The umbilical cord and a human placenta were reportedly found in the suspects’ apartment inside the top drawer of a dresser.
Thoma and Blaha were arrested and booked into the Webster County Jail for first-degree murder, the criminal complaint says. Thoma also faces a count for abuse of a corpse. Thoma’s bond was set at just over $1 million and Blaha’s at $1 million, WHO-TV reports. The suspects were scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, Dec. 8.
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