EUCLID, Ohio (WJW) – Euclid police are investigating after a woman told detectives she found the remains of an infant inside a shoe box.

Police Chief Scott Meyer says the woman told police she found the shoe box in the bedroom closet of her now adult daughter.

The woman and her adult daughter both went to the Euclid Police Department Tuesday to report the incident. Officials believe the remains may have been in the box for about four years.

“We just started this investigation but early indications are this may have been a teenage girl who had become pregnant and I think was very afraid, and fearful and wasn’t quite sure what to do,” Meyer said. 

He stressed the adult daughter was a juvenile when the incident took place and she told the detectives she believed the baby was stillborn.

“No one is in custody at this point, no charges have been filed,” Meyer said. “We will obviously fully investigate this tragic incident.”

The remains were sent to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office to determine if the baby was breathing at the time of birth.

“It’s all very sad,” Meyer said.

The chief said he wants to remind people of Ohio’s Safe Haven Law for newborns. The law allows a birth parent of a newborn to leave an unharmed infant with a medical worker in a hospital,  a firefighter or a police officer at the department, without facing prosecution.

“If you are in this type of situation here in Euclid, please do contact us,” Meyer said. “You can either come directly to the department or call us to the residence. We can work together on sorting this all out.”