‘A heartbreaking tragedy’: Fla. college student allegedly drowned newborn in toilet before performing in musical

PALM COAST, Fla. (TCN) — A woman has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child after allegedly giving birth at home and then drowning the newborn in the toilet, authorities say.

NBC Miami reports that early in the morning on March 6, police were called to perform a welfare check on a woman. The caller said the woman had reportedly sent them messages that she had given birth at home. The messages between the caller and the woman indicated that the baby had born alive, and the caller was concerned the woman might have done something to the baby.

Responding deputies met Anne Mae Demegillo, 20, who told them she was not sure she was pregnant when she began experiencing severe abdominal pain. She then allegedly told them she gave birth on the toilet, according to NBC Miami. She allegedly said she thought the baby was dead, so she placed it in a duffel bag.

At a press conference, Deputy Joe Barile of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office stated after Demegillo placed the infant in the duffel bag, she went to class and then performed at a local theater. WESH reports she performed in the musical “Anything Goes” as the character Virtue. Demegillo then allegedly returned home and buried the infant, who weighed approximately 3 pounds, 6 ounces, in a shallow grave in the backyard. 

According to NBC Miami, detectives determined Demegillo “knowingly and purposefully allowed the newborn to drown in the toilet.”

Demegillo was arrested on aggravated manslaughter charges and booked into jail. According to Barile, Demegillo was “oddly calm” during her interviews with police, the New York Post reports.

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly called the indecent “a heartbreaking tragedy” in a statement and referenced Florida’s safe haven law, which allows parents the ability to surrender newborns at fire stations, police stations, or hospitals if unable to care for them, NBC Miami reports.

According to WESH, Demegillo appeared in court on March 7 and was denied bond. The investigation is active.

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