Baby Was Buried Inside Beer Box In Shallow Grave In Wilmington, Man And Woman In Custody: Sheriff

WILMINGTON, IL — A man and woman "made incriminating statements" and remained in custody early Saturday after sheriff's deputies found an infant buried in a Wilmington yard on Friday.

On Friday afternoon, a source had confirmed to Patch that the remains of a baby were found buried in the 1900 block of Roberts Street in Wilmington.

According to a news release issued late Friday, detectives had received a tip a day earlier pertaining to an infant possibly buried on the property. They also learned that a 36-year-old woman had given birth to a child, and the infant's remains were marked with a makeshift headstone, according to a Will County Sheriff's Office news release.

After conducting interviews and obtaining information corroborating the tip, detectives secured a search warrant for the residential property.

At 9 a.m. Friday, deputies took several suspects into custody and secured the Roberts Road property, according to the release. Crime scene investigators were then called in and, along with detectives, were able to locate the area where the infant was buried.

According to the sheriff's office, crime scene investigators then dug approximately 36 inches into the ground and found what appeared to be an Old Style beer box. The remains of an infant were inside the box, wrapped in a plastic bag and a cloth, officials said.

The Will County Coroner's Office was called to the property and took possession of the remains. An autopsy on the baby is scheduled for Saturday.

The 36-year-old woman and a 36-year-old man were interviewed by detectives and "made incriminating statements pertaining to the concealment of the death of the infant," the news release said.

Officials said the sheriff's office is working closely with the Will County State's Attorney's Office on potential charges. The man and woman will remain in custody "until formal charges are pursued once the autopsy is concluded," the sheriff's office said.

More information, including the identity of the suspects, will be released once formal charges are filed, according to the news release.

The baby's age, identity and sex were not immediately known Friday afternoon and had not been released as of late Friday night.