LODI, Calif. — The rhythm of their baby’s first heartbeat recording plays each time a Lodi family squeezes the paw of a plushy teddy bear. Mari Jo Planas and Everado Munoz got each of their sons a teddy bear as well to remember their little sister, Amiliana-Rose Navarro Romero. They said she had died during the second trimester of pregnancy and was stillborn.
“Her body is like God’s little outfit that God didn’t finish, but he was there with her since day one,” Planas said.
These mementos are all they have left of their first daughter after they said someone at Cherokee Memorial Park and Funeral Home tossed her remains in the garbage. To make matter worse, it took staff two weeks before realizing their horrendous mistake, according to police.
Lodi Police Department said they searched the local landfill on Sunday for the body of the stillborn baby but didn't find her.
“(The funeral home) promised us that they’re going to take care of her and keep her safe. That’s all we asked of them," Planas said.
Planas and Munoz said the broken promise feels like losing their baby all over again.
“We really can’t even have her alive, and now, we cannot even have her body,” Planas said.
Lodi Police said they received a report from the funeral home on July 16 that a fetus was missing from storage. After reviewing the security video, they determined a transport service contractor had disposed of an item containing the fetal remains into a waste container two weeks prior.
The couple saw the video and described a man removing a bag of their daughter’s remains from a cradle in cold storage and dropping it on the floor before retrieving it again.
“He grabbed the bag,” Planas said. “(He) kept on swinging it and shaking it knowing that the baby was there.”
Planas broke down, but Munoz completed their story.
“After that, he walked around and unzipped the bag and took her out of the cradle, walked to the trash can and threw it in the trash can like dirt,” Munoz said.
A funeral home spokesperson said they could not provide details due to the sensitive nature of what happened. They released a statement saying in part, “we are working closely with the family, law enforcement, and other involved to investigate the incident and resolve the issue quickly.”
Police said the people in the video have been contacted, and the case is being forwarded to San Joaquin’s District Attorney’s office to determine if criminal charges should be filed.
Planas and Munoz said they are seeking justice, but right now, they are still working through their grief.
“Even though that person threw her in the garbage like trash, we hope that she knows that we love her and that’s not we wanted for her. We wanted the best for her, even after death,” her parents said.
The parents are seeking lawyers and have a GoFundMe for the effort.
“We are fighting for our daughter no matter what we will get her the Justice that she deserves,” Planas said.
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