Suspect In ‘Baby Hope’ Case Denies Killing Her

Says police coerced his confession

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The man accused of murdering a young girl who was left in a cooler by a New York City highway in 1991 says he didn’t kill her and that police coerced his confession.

Conrado Juarez told the New York Times that his sister Belvina called him on his cell phone to tell him that Anjelica Castillo, known as “Baby Hope” for decades while her identity remained a mystery, had fallen down the stairs and died. He said he helped Belvina dispose of the body in a blue cooler near the highway, but didn’t kill her.

As the Times notes, only three percent of Americans had cell phones in 1991.

Police say Juarez confessed to sexually assaulting and then killing Angelica, but Juarez said he was coerced. The case was cold for almost 30 years until recently.

[NYT]