In front of a television camera, an angry Newton County father shouted, demanding his newborn daughter be returned. Four days later, he was charged with murder in her death.
Caliyah McNabb lived only two weeks before she was killed, wrapped in a blue blanket, and placed in a bag in the woods behind her home, investigators say. On Wednesday, Christopher Michael McNabb was charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery and concealing a death, Capt. Keith Crum with the Newton Sheriff’s Office said.
An autopsy determined Caliyah died from blunt force trauma to the head and ruled the manner of death a homicide, Newton Coroner Tommy Davis said late Tuesday. But no details were released about how McNabb allegedly injured the child, or why.
The crime rocked the Covington community, including those who helped searched for the newborn in hopes of finding her alive. By Wednesday night, more than 800 people had joined a “Justice for Caliyah McNabb” Facebook group, with many posting comments and sharing theories on what happened.
“This has really gotten to me and my heart,” one person posted. “I would have taken that baby in a heartbeat no questions asked.”
The basic details of Caliyah’s case were eerily similar to the death of a 7-month-old in Gwinnett County more than 25 years earlier.
In July 1992, Kenny Hardwick said he stopped to help two stranded motorists on Old Norcross Road, and they had taken baby Haley. Searchers combed the area, and both Hardwick and the baby’s mother pleaded publicly for her return. Three weeks later, Hardwick told investigators where to find the baby’s body.
Hardwick claimed Haley had hurt herself while he was outside doing yardwork, police said. He said he came inside and found her choking, that he panicked and took her to the mud flats. Police found Haley’s body in a shallow grave off Boggs Road, and Hardwick later pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
In the latest case, Caliyah’s mother, Cortney Bell, called 911 Saturday morning to report the infant was missing, launching an extensive search of the mobile home community. That night, McNabb pleaded for his daughter to be returned.
“I want my kid back, man,” McNabb said. “That’s my child, man. I want my kid!”
On Sunday, searchers found the baby’s body. Before McNabb could be questioned by investigators, he jumped out of a moving vehicle and ran, police said. He was later found after a convenience store clerk recognized him. Witnesses at the store said that McNabb yelled that he “didn’t do it” before he was taken into custody. McNabb was arrested for violating his probation in Bartow County.
Bell was questioned Sunday night at the Sheriff’s Office. She is not considered a suspect, Crum said Wednesday.
“We’re still in the middle of the investigation,” Crum said. “We developed probable cause to arrest the father, Christopher, but we don’t have probable cause for a second arrest at this time.”
McNabb has an extensive criminal record and has served time in state prison three times since 2008, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. He was convicted in Bartow, Coweta and Fayette counties of various crimes, including obstruction, theft by taking, burglary and criminal damage, records show. Most recently, McNabb was released from prison on Sept. 2, 2016, after serving about 14 months.
McNabb is expected to appear in court Thursday. He was being held without bond late Wednesday.
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