Father arrested 10 years after 'Baby Precious' found dead at Portland, Oregon recycling center

A newborn girl who was found dead in a recycling center in Portland, Oregon a decade ago has been identified and the infant's father has been arrested in connection to her death, authorities said Thursday.

Alnath Omar Oliver, 53, was arrested Thursday, just over 10 years after Portland police responded to a report of a deceased baby found in a recycling center in May 2013.

The medical examiner ruled the baby's death a homicide, but despite widespread interest in the case, the identity of "Baby Precious" remained unknown and the case went cold, the Portland Police Bureau said in a news release.

In 2019, Portland police department's cold case unit sent tissues to a private forensics laboratory, and while the tissues did not lead to an immediate result, police said a "family connection" was found in December 2021.

According to police, it took another year and a half to identify the parents of "Baby Precious" and locate a suspect.

Investigators also learned that "Baby Precious'" name was Amara.

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The case was presented to a grand jury earlier this month and the jury indicted Amara's father, Oliver, of Portland, on two counts of second degree manslaughter, two counts of first degree criminal mistreatment, one count of third degree rape and one count of concealing the birth of an infant.

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested Oliver Thursday and booked him into the Multnomah County Detention Center, according to the news release.

“While we continue to mourn the death of baby Amara, we hope this significant announcement helps our community with the healing process from this tragedy,” said Portland Police Bureau Chief Chuck Lovell in the news release.

“I want to express my appreciation for the tenacity of the investigators in this case, and the determination they had to seek justice for ‘Baby Precious,’” Lovell said.