A Missouri woman has been accused of killing her newborn son after authorities say she gave birth in a toilet at a meat processing plant a...
A Missouri woman has been accused of killing her newborn son after authorities say she gave birth in a toilet at a meat processing plant and allowed the baby to drown.
Makuya Stephanie Kambamba, 28, of Kirksville, was arrested on Friday and charged with first and second-degree murder, according to court documents filed by the Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP).
Kambamba gave birth to her baby in the restroom at the Smithfield Foods plant in Milan, where she works, on May 6.
Investigators say she then knowingly allowed the baby to drown in the toilet.
Makuya Stephanie Kambamba, 28, was charged with murder on Friday in Milan, Missouri. Investigators say she gave birth in a restroom at a meat processing plant and knowingly allowed the baby to drown in the toilet
Kambamba works at the Smithfield Food plant in Milan (above) where she gave birth on May 6
Court documents state that Kambamba told police officers that she saw the newborn moving as he was face down in the toilet water.
Kambamba said she then sat back down on the toilet because she was still having labor contractions, and never checked on him until about 30 minutes later when a Smithfield nurse entered the restroom.
An autopsy on the child showed evidence consistent with drowning.
Kambamba's arrest late Friday afternoon was executed by MHSP, the Kirksville Police Department and the Sullivan County Sheriff's Office.
In addition to the murder charges, the 28-year-old is facing charges for first-degree involuntary manslaughter, second-degree involuntary manslaughter and abuse or neglect of a child resulting in death.
She was processed at the sheriff's office in Milan before being transported to the Daviess/DeKalb Regional Jail in Pattonsburg, where she is being held without bond.
Smithfield Foods - the largest pork producer in the world - has made headlines in recent weeks due to coronavirus outbreaks at its plants across the US
Smithfield Foods - the largest pork producer in the world - has been making headlines in recent weeks due to coronavirus outbreaks at its plants across the US.
While the plant in Milan only has one confirmed case, all of its workers have been offered COVID-19 tests after possible exposure to the person infected.
Sullivan County, where the plant is located, recorded 11 new cases over the weekend after the large-scale testing began.
It's unclear how many of those cases may have stemmed from the plant.
Earlier this month employees at the Milan plant filed a lawsuit accusing Smithfield of not doing enough to protect workers from coronavirus.
A federal judge dismissed the lawsuit on May 6, ruling that oversight of how the plant adheres to guidance aimed at slowing the spread of the virus falls to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, not the courts.
Another Smithfield plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was at one point America's largest source of COVID-19 cases after an outbreak sickened at least 800 workers.
The Smithfield plant in Milan (pictured) only has one confirmed COVID-19 case
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