Woman Charged with Second-Degree Manslaughter Over Newborn Found Dead in the Mississippi River Nearly 14 Years Ago

• 43-year-old Jennifer Nichole Baechle was charged with two counts of second-degree manslaughter over the death of a baby, whose body was found over 13 years ago
• The newborn, named “Baby Angel” by investigators, was found deceased in the Mississippi River on Sept. 5, 2011
• Baechle’s bail was reportedly set at $200,000, but a conditional bail was set at $20,000

A woman has been arrested in connection with the death of a baby girl, who was found deceased over 13 years ago.

According to NBC News and CBS News, 43-year-old Jennifer Nichole Baechle was charged with two counts of second-degree manslaughter after DNA evidence revealed she was the baby’s mother.

“A Winona woman has been charged in connection with the death of a newborn baby found dead in the Mississippi River more than 13 years ago,” the Winona County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a press release on Thursday, April 24.

Authorities stated Baechle was charged at the Winona County District Court.

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Officials said the newborn, nicknamed “Baby Angel,” was found deceased in the Mississippi River near Winona, Minn. on Sept. 5 in 2011.

According to NBC News, the baby’s body was floating down the river inside a bag alongside “a pendant, incense and several angel figurines.”

PEOPLE contacted the Winona County Sheriff’s Office for further comment but has not heard back at the time of publication.

“While her birth mother remained hidden, this community wrapped its arms around this little girl,” Winona County Sheriff Ron Ganrude said, per CBS. “Ever since, they’ve waited in patience for answers that she deserved. We never gave up working to find those answers.”

An autopsy was performed on “Baby Angel,” according to a criminal complaint examined by CBS. It revealed that she was only a day or two old when she died.

“Baby Angel” was also reportedly attached to a 4-inch section of the umbilical cord that did not appear to have been cut by medical staff.

“The medical examiner noted several fractures on the front and side of the infant’s skull,” the complaint read, according to NBC. “There was bleeding on the brain. There was no evidence of medical intervention on the infant.”

Authorities also found evidence that the skull fractures occurred while she was alive and were not from birth.

Investigators collaborated with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension but were unable to discover “Baby Angel”’s identity or determine what happened to her.

Per Winona Daily News, a funeral was held for the baby by the sheriff’s office in 2012.

Over ten years later, investigators contacted Firebird Forensics Group to continue the search.

“Investigators learned the identity of Baby Angel’s mother after receiving a lead through forensic investigative genetic genealogy after enlisting the help of Firebird Forensics Group. Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension forensic scientists tested a DNA sample obtained with a court order to confirm that Baechle is Baby Angel’s mother,” the sheriff’s office said in their release.

“Advances in investigative technique and in science are happening all of the time,” Cathy Knutson, Deputy Superintendent of Forensic Science Services at the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said in a statement. “That is why it is so important to never give up on any unsolved case.”

According to NBC News, Winona County Attorney Karin Sonneman said that Baechle was a married woman with two children and that she is the only person charged.

“At this time, she is the only parent that came up,” Sonneman said. “Obviously there’s a father out there somewhere, but at this time the forensics only identified her.”

Her unconditional bail was reportedly set at $200,000, but a conditional bail was set at $20,000.