Mom arrested after 4-month-old baby Luna found dead in South LA dumpster

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A 19-year-old woman suspected of leaving her dead 4-month-old daughter in a dumpster in South Los Angeles could soon face formal criminal charges as police prepare to present the case to prosecutors.

Takiyah Babers was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murder after Los Angeles Police Department officers questioned her near the area where the infant had been discovered.

A GoFundMe has been set up for the infant’s family to help to pay for memorial services.

Babers was being held on $2 million bail at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department inmate records.

Police said the investigation would be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office for consideration of criminal charges.

The baby was found unresponsive in a dumpster in the 5200 block of Alba Street at around 10:30 p.m. Monday.

Paramedics rushed the girl to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Authorities did not immediately publicly identify the infant, but Babers' foster parents told reporters at the scene that the baby's name was Luna.

Police detained Babers the following morning while investigating the infant's death. The LAPD later identified her as the baby's biological mother.

"This case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office for filing consideration," the department said.

Authorities have not disclosed how the infant died, and a possible motive has not been announced.

The baby's death prompted an outpouring of grief in the neighborhood, where community members created a makeshift memorial near the dumpster. Dozens of candles were lit and flowers were placed at the scene, while balloons were tied to the dumpster where the child had been found.

Herman Johnson, Babers' foster father, told Fox11 that the discovery had left him devastated.

"That was the sweetest little baby in the world. To be found in a Dumpster, dirty Dumpster, it just broke my heart," Johnson said. "I don't know what to do. I don't even know what to say."

Johnson said he questioned Babers on Tuesday morning after learning that an infant had been discovered in a trash bin nearby.

According to Johnson, Babers initially told him that the baby was sleeping. She later allegedly said the infant was at the home of the baby's father, but Johnson said that also turned out not to be true.

Babers' foster mother, Laura Lacy, told reporters she had not suspected anything was seriously wrong before the baby's death.

She said she "had no idea [Babers] was feeling that way to discard" the infant.

Babers had not been scheduled to appear in court as of early Wednesday morning.

The circumstances surrounding the baby's death remain under investigation. Police have not announced whether investigators believe the infant died before being placed in the dumpster or disclosed any findings about the cause or manner of death.

Anyone with information about the case was urged to contact the LAPD's Abused Child Unit at 213-486-0530.