Fetus removed from mothers body, Amber Alert Options

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Amber Alert issued after fetus removed from woman's body
Police seeking red Honda hatchback
Friday, December 17, 2004 Posted: 3:30 PM EST (2030 GMT)


Investigators arrive at the home of Bobbi Jo Stinnett who was killed in her home in Skidmore, Missouri.




(CNN) -- Missouri authorities have issued an Amber Alert for an infant after a woman, who was eight months' pregnant, was killed and the fetus removed from her body.

Bobbi Jo Stinnett, 23, was slain at about 3 p.m. Thursday (4 p.m. ET) in her house in Skidmore in northwest Missouri.

Authorities said they believe she was strangled with a rope or other type of line.

The fetus was taken from her body, possibly with a knife, Nodaway County Sheriff Ben Espey said Friday.

"I've been in law enforcement 20 years, 12 as sheriff," Espey said. "This is one of the worst ordeals we've had to deal with."

Stinnett's mother found her daughter's body and called 911 at 3:38 p.m. Thursday.

"It was a pretty gruesome sight," Espey said.

An autopsy was under way Friday.

Doctors: Child likely alive
Doctors who examined Stinnett in a hospital emergency room, where she was pronounced dead, said her child likely is alive, Espey said. It would be a month premature, however, and "somebody would have to have knowledge of how to take care of this child."

"Right now, all of us in law enforcement are acting on the possibility and the hope that that child is still alive," Espey said.

Espey said he went to a local member of Congress after he was told that the case did not meet the criteria for an Amber Alert because authorities did not know the child's hair or eye color or any other details.

He said the alert was delayed until about midnight.

"I'm a little disappointed that it happened like it did," he said. "All of us standing here feel like this baby, even though it was taken a month premature, we had a live baby. I feel like that should justify an Amber Alert."

Authorities said that Stinnett was a white woman and the offspring also was believed to be a white female.

Police: Blond hair found in victim's hand
Police are looking for a red, two-door Honda hatchback, a late '80s or early '90s model, Espey said. A similar car was seen overnight in another Missouri county, but authorities lost it during a pursuit.

Blond hair was found clutched in Stinnett's hand and could provide DNA evidence, Espey said. Fingerprints also were found at the scene, but no weapon was discovered, he said. There were no signs of forced entry.

On Friday, FBI agents were headed out of state to check into a lead involving a woman who had come home with a day-old baby but had not gone to a hospital, Espey said. He declined to elaborate.

Stinnett and her husband bred dogs and sold them over the Internet, neighbors said, adding that it was not unusual to see cars parked outside their house.

Neighbor Chris Law said he saw a car at the house about same time authorities believe the slaying occurred, and he said he regrets not going to check on Stinnett.

Stinnett's husband was at work at the time and has been eliminated as a suspect, Espey said. Authorities removed a computer from the home and were attempting to find Internet contacts as part of the investigation.

"Everybody said she's a nice lady," Espey said. "She didn't have any enemies."

One theory under examination is that the baby might be sold, he said.

"When someone would murder somebody and take a child, the reason for that is either they want it themselves, or they can make a profit from it," he said.

Skidmore is about 35 miles north of St. Joseph, Missouri.

CNN's Miriam Falco contributed to this report.

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