CRIME
Georgia’s ‘Baby Jane Doe’ Identified After 35 Years, Mother And Man Charged With Felony Murder
GEORGIA BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Authorities in Georgia on Monday announced they have identified the remains of a 5-year-old girl who was found encased in concrete in 1988, and arrested two suspects.
The 35-year-old cold case began on Dec. 21, 1988 when the remains of the young girl known until now as Baby Jane Doe were found in the woods near Millwood in Ware County. On Monday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced the girl was 5-year-old Kenyatta “KeKe” Odom, of Albany.
Speaking at a press conference, Special Agent in Charge Jason Seacrist said the body was wrapped in blanket, placed in a duffel bag, and hidden inside an old TV cabinet, which was then encased in concrete.
Finally after 35 years not only were we able to identify the remains of who ‘Baby Jane Doe’ was, but we were also able to make the arrest of who we believe were responsible, Seacrist said.
Although an Albany Herald newspaper found near the girls’ remains linked the crime scene to Albany, about 100 miles away, investigators were not able to make an identification.
In 2019, agents looked into genome sequencing with the hope of making an identification. With the help of genealogy services, investigators found a family tree in Albany linked to the child. After a news story about the child’s death aired in 2022, investigators received a tip indicating the child may be Kenyatta.
A tipster called. She had heard the story of ‘Baby Jane Doe’ and she believed she may know who this little girl may be, Seacrist said. She knew that a child had gone missing and that her mother said the child had gone to live with her father. This person never really believed that story.
On Nov. 9, agents arrested Evelyn Odom, a.k.a. Zmecca Luciana, age 56, and Ulyster Sanders, age 61, who investigators say was Odom’s live-in boyfriend at the time of the girl’s death. Both were charged with felony murder, cruelty to children in the first degree, aggravated battery – family violence, concealing the death of another person, and conspiracy to conceal the death of another person.
The GBI said investigators relied on partners including the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), University of North Texas, Gene by Gene, Othram, Inc., and Innovative Forensic Investigations to make the identification.
TMX contributed to this article.
