Mother Charged After 7-Year-Old's Decaying Body Found in Closet

A mom stands accused of murdering her own child, after the decomposing body of her 7-year-old daughter was found stuffed in a closet at their home.

The grim discovery was made by a concerned stranger who said he entered the apartment in DeKalb County, Georgia, after noticing the front door was open and a foul smell emanating from inside.

Police later identified the little girl as Alivia Hobbs-Jordan, and arrested her 27-year-old mother, Alondra Hobbs, on suspicion of felony murder and cruelty in the second degree, DeKalb County Police Department said in a statement published on Facebook on Friday. It was not clear if Hobbs had an attorney.

The distressing case comes after experts warned how widespread child abuse is across the U.S., with a study published last August suggesting that school closures during the pandemic may have allowed some cases to slip under the radar.

"Child maltreatment is a vexing problem in the U.S.," said study author Maria Fitzpatrick, a professor of economics and public policy at Cornell University's Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy.

"To protect children, we need to better understand why so many are maltreated—13 percent according to one study and 4 in 10 according to another ... Early detection is crucial because it leads to quicker intervention and that can result in providing a child with a safe, permanent home."

The statement about the Georgia murder investigation, issued by DeKalb County Police Department on Friday, revealed the investigation was launched on Sunday, June 25, after the discovery of a body that afternoon.

A local man, who chose to remain anonymous, told news station WXIA that he was the person who first found the girl at around 4:00 p.m. He said he approached the apartment because the door was "wide open," which was when he was overcome by a foul smell coming from inside.

He decided to investigate and said objects were strewn around the apartment as though someone had "left in a hurry." He then made the sickening discovery that the smell was rotting human flesh when he saw an apparently mummified arm protruding from a closet door. "She looked like a mummy," he said. "You could tell it was a young girl by what she had on and by her hair."

The officer who was called to the scene at the Hidden Valley Apartment Complex confirmed that the bystander had indeed found a child's body, with his report describing how he saw a full head of hair and a decaying arm and leg protruding from the closet when he arrived, according to the Associated Press.

One neighbor later told the officer that the female tenant who lived there had moved out and had not been seen for a couple of months. Another officer searched the apartment and found mail addressed to Alondra Hobbs, which sparked their interest in her as a potential suspect.

The little girl's family has been left reeling by the horrifying news. Hobbs's aunt, Latriece Robinson, told Fox 5 Atlanta that she is still struggling to accept the enormity of the tragedy: "I woke up this morning and it's been on my mind all day. I don't know. I haven't processed it. I'm still not believing it [...] We had no clue. The baby [Alivia Hobbs-Jordan] was supposed to be with the dad's mom in Albany. That's what she [Hobbs] kept telling us, but she was here staying with my sister. She was staying in the back with a guy."

Robinson told the local news station that the little girl had autism and said Hobbs also had two other young children. "The question is why," she said. "Why didn't you call or pick up the phone and ask for help if you feel like it was overwhelming? [...] We all have issues, but I didn't think she would do something to her kids."

The family has set up a GoFundMe fundraising page to help raise money to pay for a funeral, the station reported. As of early Monday, the site had raised $95 of its $7,500 target.

DeKalb County Police Department's statement read: "On 06/25/2023, the DeKalb County Homicide Assault Unit began an investigation after the body of an unknown individual that appeared to be a child was located at 2815 Misty Water Drive. The investigation led to the identification of the 7-year-old victim. Further investigation led to the child's mother, Ms. Alondra Hobbs, being arrested and charged with Felony Murder and Cruelty in the 2nd Degree on 06/29/2023."

A police spokeswoman, Officer Elise Wells, said Hobbs was at a hospital Friday after having been charged the day before, according to the AP. Wells did not reveal why Hobbs had been hospitalized.

Police have not yet revealed how the girl died.

Newsweek has reached out to DeKalb County Police Department for further information and comment.