Burned body of fetus found near Arizona’s largest homeless encampment

On Saturday, the burned body of a fetus was allegedly found at “The Zone,” which is Phoenix, Arizona’s largest homeless camp.

12 News journalist Erica Stapleton said of the incident on Twitter: “Police confirm a fetus was killed by fire around 1AM near 11th Ave & Madison in downtown Phoenix. This area is known as ‘The Zone,’ Phoenix’s largest homeless encampment.”

An eyewitness called 911 around 1:00 a.m. on Saturday to report an abandoned child in the homeless camp, the New York Post reported. Officers who arrived on the scene were met with the burned remains of a newborn child.

According to the Post, the newborn was pronounced dead at the scene and was approximately 20 to 24 weeks in gestational age.

One witness, Joel Coplin, said that his neighbor’s fiancée “came and was trying to put the fire out, and then he went to stomp on it to put it out and realized it was a baby in there.”

“He saw the head, a perfectly shaped head, and little arms, hands, legs, chest. He grabbed his fiancée and turned away so she wouldn’t see it, and he was freaked out. He called 911,” Coplin said, according to the Post.

Coplin described the incident as “utterly horrific” and difficult to wrap his head around but did acknowledge that it wasn’t surprising due to how close to “The Zone” the newborn was found. 

As authorities investigate the incident, the Office of the Medical Examiner will be conducting a post mortem autopsy.

This comes as multiple property and business owners are suing the city over the encampment.