DNA cold case: Ex

Meaonia Michelle Allen, 53, of Durant, Okla., is charged with first-degree murder in the Dec. 8, 1993, death of her newborn son.

Oklahoma authorities have charged a former daycare worker in the 1993 death of her newborn son, whose throat she allegedly slit before she dumped his body in a rural Choctaw County yard.

Meaonia Michelle Allen, 53, of Durant, is charged with first-degree murder with deliberate intent. Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation officials said Allen turned herself in Friday to face the charge.

OSBI investigators identified Allen as the boy's mother with help from Parabon Nanolabs, a Virginia-based genetic genealogy company that works with law enforcement agencies to solve cold cases across the country.

"The synergy between our agents and criminalists to solve cold cases, especially those with an unidentified victim, is to be applauded," OSBI Director Ricky Adams said in a statement. "Identifying the use of genetic genealogy as a tool, and the work of Parabon and our internal genealogy specialist, provided significant leads in this disturbing case.

"Baby Doe can now be properly laid to rest, and his killer will be held accountable."

>> Read more trending news

The case began Dec. 8, 1993, when Allen's boss, Valoree Brock, found the lifeless body of a baby boy in her backyard in Hugo and called authorities. Choctaw County Sheriff's Office investigators brought in OSBI agents to help with the case.

"The Office of the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner's Office performed an autopsy on Baby Doe," OSBI officials said. "The ME determined Baby Doe was born alive, and the manner of death was homicide as a result of his throat being slashed."

Agents conducted numerous interviews in the aftermath of the baby's death, including interviewing Allen, who was then 25 years old. Allen was working for Brock and dating Brock's son.

Despite the investigation, no suspects in the homicide were identified. The case went cold, but investigators retained samples of the boy's DNA for future use.

That opportunity came in October 2020, when the OSBI special agent assigned to the Baby Doe case met with the agency's cold case unit, as well as criminalists in the biology unit at the OSBI Forensic Science Center.

Together, they submitted Baby Doe's DNA to Parabon Nanolabs.

>> Read more trending news

"In April 2021, the results from Parabon were reviewed by the OSBI team, and investigative leads as a result of the test results were pursued," authorities said. "Earlier this month, additional DNA testing resulted in Allen being identified as the baby boy's mother."

An OSBI special agent met with Allen on June 15 at the Durant Police Department. During the interview, Allen agreed to submitted samples of her DNA to be tested to determine if she was the biological mother of Baby Doe.

About 20 minutes after that initial interview ended, Allen called the agent and admitted the baby was her son, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Oklahoman.

The court document states that Allen told investigators she had never told anyone she was pregnant. She said she went into labor unexpectedly at Brock's home and gave birth in a barn on the property.

She initially claimed that her son had been stillborn. A few days later, in a follow-up interview, Allen was shown the baby's autopsy report, the agent wrote.

At that point, Allen allegedly confessed to cutting the boy's throat.

"After reviewing the document, Allen provided information that she had become pregnant and did not tell anyone of the pregnancy, including her parents or current boyfriend," the agent wrote in the affidavit. "She intended to have Baby Doe at the hospital and put it up for adoption after its birth."

That never happened.

>> Read more true crime stories

On Dec. 7, 1993, Allen had spent the night at Brock's home, along with her boyfriend, his son and her daughter.

"During the early morning hours of Dec. 8, 1993, she had a physical altercation which caused her to go into labor," the affidavit states, according to the newspaper. "Allen went to a barn on the property and gave birth to Baby Doe."

It was unclear if Allen told the agent what she used to kill her son, but she said she carried the child to the house after his birth and laid him on a couch outside.

"She retrieved ‘it' (the weapon) from the house," the agent wrote. "She then carried the baby behind the well house and cut Baby Doe's throat."

Later that morning, Brock noticed what she thought was a doll in her backyard. When she walked outside to retrieve the toy, she realized it was a newborn baby.

Investigators learned that Allen had spent the night at Brock's home, so they interviewed her on Dec. 17, nine days after the homicide, the Oklahoman reported. She told detectives she had never seen a pregnant woman at the house.

Allen is being held without bond in the Choctaw County Jail.

Dozens of reckless racers have chased a 7-pound (3 kilogram) wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down the near-vertical Cooper's Hill near Gloucester in southwestern England. Read MoreRolling thunder: Contestants chase cheese wheel down a hill in chaotic UK race

The word list for the Scripps National Spelling Bee is crafted by a panel of 21 people, including five former Scripps champions. Read MoreExclusive secrets of the National Spelling Bee: Picking the words to identify a champion

A government official in India has been suspended from his job after he ordered a water reservoir to be drained so he could retrieve his smartphone, which he had dropped while taking a selfie. Read MoreIndian official suspended after he drains reservoir to retrieve phone he dropped while taking selfie

A Michigan college has ended its partnership with a Florida charter school whose principal was forced to resign after a parent complained sixth graders were exposed to pornography during a les… Read MoreCollege ends partnership with school over the David issue

A busy company owner for the early part of his life, Seiichi Sano began anew at 80 by climbing Mt. Fuji. Apparently not challenged enough by Japan's highest peak, he almost immediately took up… Read MoreJapanese surfer nears 90 and talks of catching waves at 100

The brother of the late New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez is facing criminal and motor vehicle charges in Connecticut, accused of throwing a brick onto the ESPN headquarters campus a… Read MorePolice: Aaron Hernandez's brother arrested in ESPN incident

30 minutes later, the suspect returned and entered the apartment. The father, armed with a handgun, fired once and struck the suspect in the chest. Read MorePolice: Florida father shoots, kills daughter's abusive ex-boyfriend

Italy's dugout at the World Baseball Classic comes outfitted with an espresso machine. And it's getting lots of attention. Read MoreItalian's espresso machine a hit at World Baseball Classic

Disgraced South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh testified in his defense for a second day Friday, insisting that he did not kill his wife and son in June 2021 as he faced questions about his m… Read MoreAlex Murdaugh trial: Prosecutor focuses on timeline as suspect takes stand for 2nd day

Disgraced South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh took the witness stand in his own defense Thursday and admitted he lied to investigators, but denied having shot his wife and son. Read MoreAlex Murdaugh trial: Double murder suspect takes stand

CDC warns that a brand of eyedrops may be linked to drug-resistant bacterial infections. Read MoreCDC tells consumers to stop using Ezricare Artificial Tears as it investigates infections, death

Currently in Tulsa