COLUMBUS COUNTY — One of the oldest and most heartbreaking cases in Columbus County history has finally been solved. After 47 years, investigators with the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation have identified the mother of a newborn baby girl found dead at the county landfill in 1979.
On February 24, 2026, deputies arrested Cathy McKee of Whiteville, charging her with felony concealing the birth of a child. The arrest marks a major breakthrough in a case that has weighed heavily on generations of investigators.
A Case That Never Faded From Memory
The investigation began in 1979, when the body of a newborn girl was discovered inside a trash bag at the Columbus County landfill. Deputies conducted an extensive investigation at the time, but leads eventually ran out, and the case went cold.
Even so, the infant’s story was never forgotten. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the case was passed down through decades of investigators — some now retired, others deceased — who continued to feel a responsibility to the child whose identity and story remained unknown.
What ultimately made the case solvable was the meticulous work done in 1979. Long before DNA technology existed, deputies preserved evidence with extraordinary care, not knowing whether it would ever lead to answers.
DNA Advances Lead to Breakthrough
More than a year ago, the Sheriff’s Office formally reopened the case with assistance from the SBI’s Coastal District and Cold Case Unit. Because the original evidence had been preserved, modern DNA testing allowed investigators to develop new leads and ultimately identify McKee as the infant’s mother.
She was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon.
Sheriff Rogers: “She was never forgotten.”
Sheriff Bill Rogers said the case has been deeply personal for many who worked on it.
“As a father, this case is one that hits deeply,” Rogers said. “Every child who enters this world deserves protection, love, and the chance to be known. For 47 years, this baby girl’s life — however brief — mattered to the investigators who first held that case in their hands and to every detective who reviewed it after.”
Rogers credited the original deputies for preserving evidence so carefully, and the determination of modern investigators who spent more than a year reexamining the case.
“This case shows that in Columbus County, time does not erase responsibility,” he said. “We remember, and we keep working until answers are found.”
Commitment to Cold Cases
The Sheriff’s Office expressed gratitude to the SBI for its partnership and expertise. Officials say they will continue reviewing unresolved cases and pursuing justice for victims, no matter how much time has passed.
All individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
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