A woman from New Hampshire has been charged with murder one year after a newborn girl was found dead in a pond.
The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office shared a news release on Thursday, February 26, confirming that Hepay Juma had been arrested.
“Attorney General John M. Formella and Manchester Police Chief Peter A. Marr announce that an arrest has been made in connection with the suspicious death of a female infant found deceased in Pine Island Pond in Manchester, New Hampshire, on March 27, 2025,” the release stated.
The statement went on to share that Juma, 26, was “arrested for alleged reckless second-degree murder for causing the death of Baby Jane ‘Grace’ Doe, her child, under circumstances manifesting an extreme indifference to the value of human life.”
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“The exact circumstances surrounding the incident remain under active investigation,” the statement continued. “The charges and allegations against Ms. Juma are merely accusations, and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.”
Juma is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday, February 27, in Manchester District Court, according to CBS News.
It is not currently clear if she has entered a plea or retained legal representation following her arrest. The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment.
The arrest took place eight months after a funeral was held for baby Jane “Grace” Doe in May 2025.
“The way she was discarded is heartbreaking, and it is important that we give her a proper farewell,” Marr said at the time of the girl’s death, per CBS News.
While it’s not clear if the baby was ever given a legal name, police decided to call her Grace “to celebrate the kindness extended to her by those who refuse to let her life go unrecognized,” per CBS News.
The baby’s body was discovered in late March 2025 when police responded to a report of an object floating in the water. After authorities arrived at the scene, they identified the object as the body of a newborn female.
“A thorough autopsy was conducted … While the autopsy revealed certain relevant information, additional tests are ongoing,” police said in a press release at the time.
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The baby’s exact age has never been confirmed, though police speculated she was a newborn at the time of her death.
Early on in the investigation, police said that they were seeking “information from anyone who might have seen someone discarding an object into the water at Pine Island Park between Tuesday, March 25th and Thursday, March 27th.”
Police also offered a $5,000 reward for information in the case, though few details emerged in the early months of the investigation.
Following Juma’s arrest, Attorney General Nicholas Chong Yen said that authorities were “successful in investigating thoroughly throughout the last … well, at this point, almost a year, and making sure that no stone was left unturned and pursuing all the investigative leads that they had,” per News 9.
The Attorney General’s Office also confirmed that all parties involved in the case have now been identified, including the child’s father. However, his identity has not been publicly revealed.
