By Grace Jacobson / News Director

ST. AUGUSTA, Minn. — A decades-long case in Stearns County is now considered cold.

On Thursday, July 11, the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office announced their decision to close the case of Baby Jane Doe, a baby girl whose remains were found by deputies on April 3, 1980, off County Road 136 in St. Augusta.

The Sheriff’s Office says, “We’ve not been able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt a particular person committed a crime related to the death of Baby Jane Doe.”

They add their inability to interview Baby Jane Doe’s potential mother because of her death factored into their decision to close the case.

In 2024, the Sheriff’s Office interviewed a man that the BCA later found to have “very strong evidence” to support he’s the father of Baby Jane Doe, but he denied having any knowledge about her.