Cold case detective recalls decades-long ‘Baby Skylar’ case

PHOENIX — The mystery of “Baby Skylar” has spanned decades. The newborn baby was found dead in the bathroom of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in 2005. It was a case that shook the Valley and went cold for years until police broke the case. Arrest of a Washington woman situation earlier this year.

ABC15 takes an in-depth look at how police tracked down 51-year-old Annie Anderson for the past two decades and how her legal case in Arizona turned out.

Arizona Crime Uncovered spoke with a former Phoenix cold homicide detective who has been pushing for justice in this case for years.

Watch part 1 of this episode of Arizona Crime Uncovered in the player above. You can now watch the entire episode on the ABC15 app on your streaming devices.

NEWBORN FOUND IN SKY HARBOR

“Sky Harbor was busy,” Troy Hillman said. “I mean, it’s growing by leaps and bounds every year, but it’s a very busy airport.”

Hillman previously worked for Phoenix Police as an unsolved homicide detective, helping solve high-profile cases.Channel Killer“. His team also worked on the Baby Skylar case, examining the case nearly 10 years after the baby was found in Phoenix Sky Harbor.

Explaining that he read the case file for the first time, Hillman said, “It is shocking and horrifying that someone would kill this helpless newborn baby.”

On October 10, 2005, a restroom in Terminal 4 became a crime scene. Hillman likened the moments that led to Baby Skylar being found to “divine intervention.”

“I think there was a gentleman at the airport who lost his laptop,” Hillman said.

He said an employee at the airport searched through the trash to help.

“When the housekeeper pulled the trash can out of the bag and thought it was really heavy,” Hillman said. “Then when she investigated there was another white bag, which she then opened and found a dead newborn baby.”

ABC15 has footage from 2005 when police began investigating the airport. Our report states that police are hopeful that security cameras installed in secret areas will help find the person who left the baby behind. But Hillman said it turned out there was no footage to help the case.

In the days and weeks that followed, the Valley rallied around the newborn and even held a funeral. A Phoenix detective named the baby “Skylar.”

“We had used genealogy successfully in the Channel Murders and Zombie Hunter case,” Hillman said. “But that was limited to the male DNA line, so we couldn’t use that in the Baby Skylar case. So we went to a company called Parabon, and what they were able to do was phenotyping.”

The company developed a composite of what Baby Skylar’s mother would look like when she was 25.

“They actually gave us a computer-generated composite photo of what the mother would look like,” Hillman said. “Our goal at the time was to get this out to the media widely because we believed the suspect’s mother had boarded a plane in Sky Harbor and then possibly flown to one of the states internationally.

Even after investigating the hotels and Hillman’s team following up on possible leads, it would be nearly seven years before a break in the case was achieved.

Nearly two decades after Skylar was found, Phoenix police have finally made an arrest.

ARREST OF ANNIE ANDERSON

In February 2024, police announced a major breakthrough in the case. Investigative genetic genealogy helped police and the FBI track down 51-year-old Annie Anderson.

“When confronted, Annie Anderson identified herself as the victim’s mother and described what had occurred,” said Lt. James Hester of the Phoenix Police Department after the arrest. “Anderson was arrested for Baby Skylar’s death and is currently in Washington state awaiting extradition to Arizona.”

In February, authorities did not say who helped provide the DNA sample that led to the case. Police said at the news conference that Anderson visited the Valley in 2005 for a real estate boot camp.

ABC15 asked Hillman what it was like to watch an arrest made in the case.

“Again, it was amazing, there were no family members to really support Baby Skylar,” Hillman said. “But we felt like we helped. So it was a great day to do justice to that baby.”

ABC15 sent the following comment to Anderson’s attorney in Washington, Rachel Stine-Sheridan, in the days following the arrest:

“Ms. Anderson will respond to these alleged allegations in court and through appropriate legal process. She is grateful for the support of her family and community and requests privacy on their behalf.”

But it would be months before Anderson arrived in Arizona. Snohomish County staff confirmed the 51-year-old is fighting extradition. He appeared in court many times throughout this process.

ABC15 eventually obtained the first photos of Anderson and learned more about the woman, who was arrested for first-degree murder. Body camera video of his arrest was also released by Snohomish County.

As for Anderson’s whereabouts over the decades, loved ones told ABC15 he lived in the Northwest for many years and even had children and grandchildren.

The arresting officers at one point asked Anderson if he knew this was going to happen.

“In a roundabout way,” Anderson said.

A governor’s order was eventually signed, and after months of waiting, Anderson flew to Arizona in April. His arrival marked a new phase in the case.

ANDERSON COMING TO AZ

Anderson heard the charges against him at his first hearing in Maricopa County in April 2024. He did not admit his guilt at the hearing held days later.

New details about what the 51-year-old man allegedly told police when he landed in Arizona have been revealed in new court documents.

Police said they first tracked down Anderson in 2022, and that’s when Anderson allegedly told police she gave birth in the hotel bathtub. The woman also claimed the baby was stillborn, court documents said. Police said the information was inconsistent with the evidence and information received from the medical examiner.

Another year passed before Anderson was taken into custody in Washington in December 2023. His arrest was not announced to the media until several months later.

However, after the arrest, the fight moved to the courtroom. New records filed by district attorneys say police spoke with the baby’s father, who allegedly told investigators he didn’t know Anderson was pregnant with their son in 2004. ABC15 is not naming the father, but court records say he told police Anderson was pregnant. about to be hospitalized. She also allegedly told police she didn’t know Anderson was pregnant with Baby Skylar in 2005.

Court documents also said Anderson admitted to taking the baby to Phoenix Sky Harbor in a backpack and putting the baby in the bathroom trash can “knowing he wouldn’t be able to get through security…”

Those documents also say Anderson was having relationship and financial problems and had multiple children to support. Records claimed he knew about Safe Harbor laws at the time.

Safe Harbor signs, often displayed at fire stations and other locations Let people know that it is acceptable to leave a newborn baby without criminal prosecution.

ABC15 obtained footage from September when Anderson and his legal team fought to have the $1 million bond reduced.

“If he has a passport, he is ready to surrender it to the court,” said Anderson’s attorney, Katie Gibson-McLean. “Given his lack of criminal history or involvement with law enforcement or the criminal justice system, I do not think there is any indication that he intended to flee anywhere.”

District attorneys disagreed and asked the Judge not to reduce the bond amount.

“The state’s concern here is for the defendant to return to court,” said Deputy District Attorney Shawn Steinburg. “We want this bond to remain in place because the severity of this fence and the punishment that comes with it is a strong incentive for someone who has hidden this crime for 18 years and has never lived in Arizona to not return. State whether he is released or not.”

During the oral argument, both prosecutors and Anderson’s attorneys argued about the evidence in the case. Ultimately, the Judge decided to lower the bond to $200,000. If released, the court will require Anderson to remain in the state and be subject to electronic monitoring.

Anderson’s trial was originally scheduled for next month but was later postponed until February 2025. The next hearing date is Dec. 5 and has been set as a virtual hearing, according to Maricopa County Superior Court staff.

ABC15 reached out to Anderson’s attorney by phone and email for this story over several days but did not hear back.

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