A 20-year-old Florida woman has been arrested for allegedly killing her baby shortly after giving it birth, the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday.
Anna Mae Demegillo, 20, of Palm Coast, has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child.
Around 4 a.m. on Friday, March 6, the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said its emergency communications center received a call requesting a welfare check on Demegillo.
The caller reportedly told dispatchers that Demegillo sent messages to the caller, stating that she had been secretly pregnant and had unexpectedly given birth at her home. One of the messages indicated that Demegillo’s baby was born alive and crying, but Demegillo had “done something” to the infant, FCSO said.
When deputies arrived at Demegillo’s home to conduct the welfare check, FCSO said they met with Demegillo, who told deputies “she was not sure she was pregnant, but began experiencing severe abdominal pain around 3 a.m. on Thursday, March 5, and later delivered the child in her bathroom toilet.”
The sheriff’s office said Demegillo claimed she thought her baby was deceased, so she hid it in a duffle bag in her closet and “went about her normal daily routine.”
When Demegillo later returned home, deputies said she decided to bury the child, who was deceased, in a shallow grave in her backyard.
“At no point did Demegillo contact emergency services for assistance,” FCSO said.
Following an investigation by FCSO’s Major Case Unit and Crime Scene Investigation, detectives determined that Demegillo “knowingly and purposefully allowed the newborn to drown in the toilet,” according to FCSO.
Demegillo was then arrested and booked into the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. According to jail records, she is being held without bond as of Saturday, March 7. FCSO said the investigation into the incident is active and ongoing. Anyone with information on it is asked to contact the sheriff’s office at 386-313-4911.
“This is a heartbreaking tragedy for our community, for the family involved, and an emotionally difficult case for our team,” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “I want to remind our community, especially our expectant mothers: Florida law allows you to bring a child at birth to a local fire station, hospital or law enforcement agency and surrender the child. That is a much better solution than what we are investigating today—for everyone involved, but most importantly the infant who was prevented from the life they deserve. May God bless this infant and hold and comfort the baby in his loving hands with the love the baby never received on earth.”
Under Florida’s Safe Haven Law, parents who cannot care for a newborn baby may surrender the child at any fire station, hospital or police station. Palm Coast’s Safe Haven Baby Box allows for complete anonymity and is located at Fire Station 25, which was activated on Sept. 30, 2025, FCSO said. Parents can place their newborn inside a secure, climate-controlled box without having to interact with anyone face-to-face.