PHOENIX, AZ – A nearly 20-year-old Phoenix cold case found its closure as Phoenix detectives used DNA and genealogical data to tag 51-year-old Annie Anderson of Washington as the culprit for the 2005 murder of an infant. Deemed “Baby Skylar,” the heartbreaking story of the baby girl found dead in Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport captured the hearts of Arizonans for many years.
The incident unfolded at the Phoenix airport on October 10, 2005, when airport security initiated a search for a missing laptop. The search led to maintenance workers checking a trash can in the women’s bathroom located in the airport’s Terminal 4, where they discovered the dead newborn inside a heavy black bag.
The contents of the bag also included towels from a hotel chain, but subsequent investigations of three hotels in proximity failed to identify the baby’s mother. The medical examiner stated that the cause of death was asphyxiation, which transformed the case into a homicide investigation.
Advanced investigative techniques involving DNA collected from the baby led to a composite of what the mother could look like. However, the breakthrough in the case occurred in 2021. DNA evidence and genealogy helped investigators identify a potential match for Skylar’s mother.
In January 2022, a search warrant executed in Washington confirmed Anderson as the baby’s mother following an interview. A grand jury subsequently issued an arrest warrant, charging Anderson with first-degree murder. She presently awaits extradition from a Washington jail back to Arizona to face multiple felony charges.
Retired cold case homicide detective with the Phoenix Police Department, Troy Hillman, who dedicated years to this case, highlighted the fortuitous nature of the situation, stating it was “almost divine intervention.” Hillman remains hopeful about the potential of technological advances in serving justice, even in cold cases.
The authorities have yet to release Anderson’s mug shot, adhering to Washington state law that only permits the release of mug shots of prison inmates, not jail detainees. This information will be available following Anderson’s extradition and subsequent booking in Arizona.