Inga Johansen Carriere and Andrew K. Carriere II (L-R, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office), (C) the grave where the newborn baby girl was buried (via Fox 8 screengrab)
A Louisiana couple faces murder charges more than 30 years after a newborn baby girl was smothered to death and abandoned in a garbage bag in Mississippi, according to state police in the Pelican State.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, Louisiana State Police, local police, and Mississippi detectives all played a role in solving the 1992 cold case homicide, authorities said. A Mississippi farmer was the one who initially discovered the victim’s remains on April 15, 1992, behind a pizzeria.
“The case in question involved the discovery of a female infant’s body inside a garbage bag in Picayune, MS, on April 17, 1992. The Mississippi State Medical Examiner determined that the cause of death was perinatal asphyxia due to smothering, and the case was classified as a homicide,” state police said in a press release on the arrests of Andrew Carriere and Inga Johansen Carriere, both 50 years old.
According to investigators, DNA was the key to identifying the suspects in the long-unsolved case. Renewed efforts to found out who killed the newborn girl began in August 2021, cops said.
“With the help of advanced technology, DNA profiles and fingerprints were developed from the preserved evidence. Through investigative means, detectives were able to identify the infant’s parents as 50-year-old Andrew Carriere and 50-year-old Inga Johansen Carriere, who were living in Louisiana at the time of the death,” police said.
Both suspects were charged with first-degree murder and held without bond after being arrested days apart at separate locations in Louisiana.
“On February 28, 2023, Inga Johansen Carriere was arrested at her residence in Avondale, LA. On March 9, 2023, Andrew Carriere was arrested in Galliano, LA and ultimately booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center,” police said.
Authorities allege that the couple murdered the victim in Louisiana and crossed state lines to discard the victim’s remains, raising the question of whether a federal case might be brought. In the meantime, the Carrieres are jailed without bond, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office jail records reviewed by Law&Crime show. The suspects are reportedly awaiting extradition to Mississippi.
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