16-year-old accused of shooting newborn daughter, leaving her in a tree

ALBANY, Wis. (WMTV) - A 16-year-old father allegedly told prosecutors he left his newborn daughter to die in snow-filled tree before later admitting to shooting the little girl twice in the head.

The teen, identified as Logan Kruckenberg-Anderson, faces a first-degree homicide charge in connection with the infant’s death. A criminal complaint, filed Tuesday, detailed what the teenage father told investigators who had been searching for the baby.

Warning: Some of the details below are graphic

According to the complaint, Kruckenberg-Anderson told them he placed the newborn baby, who had been named Harper, naked in a snow-filled tree in the woods near of the Village of Albany. Prosecutors say he claimed to have covered the infant with snow and walked away, adding that he knew the child would likely die of exposure.

Kruckenberg-Anderson reportedly continued, saying he could still hear Harper crying as he left, causing him to break down, dropping to his knees and crying.

After leading to investigators to Harper’s body, the complaint states, a member of the Wisconsin State Crime lab found the girl had been shot and surmised the baby was likely alive – or recently alive – when she was placed in the tree.

In an interview following the discovery of Harper’s body and bullet wounds, Kruckenberg-Anderson admitted to shooting her twice in the head, the complaint states, noting that two bullets were found at the scene where she was discovered.

An autopsy determined Harper was alive when she was shot.

Kruckenberg-Anderson is also charged with hiding the corpse of a child. He appeared in court for the first time Tuesday afternoon where his cash bond was set at one million dollars. He is due back in court on January 20 for a preliminary hearing.

The complaint states a man called Green Co. authorities early Saturday morning, saying his teenage daughter gave birth to a daughter four days earlier, on January 5, in the bathtub of a Village of Albany home. The caller added Kruckenberg-Anderson had taken the baby and they had not seen her since.

The child’s mother told investigators she and Kruckenberg-Anderson had decided they could not keep the child and needed to do something so the infant wasn’t in their life, the complaint stated.

Initially, Kruckenberg-Anderson allegedly told a Green Co. deputy that he gave the baby to a friend named Tyler, whom he met via Snapchat’s “Quick Add” feature, and Tyler was supposed to take the baby to an adoption agency in Madison.

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Kruckenberg-Anderson even offered details about the man, offering a description of him and the SUV he was reportedly driving as well as saying he paid the individual $60 to drop of the baby to be adopted, the complaint said.

Investigators also believe they have recovered the gun used to kill Harper. They say a juvenile turned in a firearm, saying Kruckenberg-Anderson gave it to him days earlier. The weapon’s caliber was consistent with the bullets and casings found at the scene.

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