Baby Will Go Home With Father Thursday
Test Results Will Likely Make Custody Official
The judge gave Andrews temporary custody to the child he calls Oscar Gavin, and the custody is likely to become permanent once DNA test results come in Friday. Officials said that the test is merely a formality, and they expect it to prove that Jon and Theresa Andrews are indeed the parents of the newborn child.
Candlelight Vigil
Timeline
Town's Reaction
Ravenna Tragedy
Baby's Condition
Neighbors Speak
Two Bodies Found
Break In Case
Telephone Records
Gunshots Heard
Body Found
Jeep Keys Found
Theresa Andrews -- a pregnant woman who was missing for five days -- was found dead early Tuesday, her baby taken by crude Caesarean section. The woman suspected of stealing the newborn boy shot herself to death as police arrived.
The 8-pound, 6-ounce baby was found asleep in a crib in the nursery of the suspect's home and was in good condition.
Theresa's body was found about a mile away, in a shallow grave in the dirt-floor garage of Michelle Bica, 39.
Portage County Coroner Roger Marcial said that Andrews was shot to death before her abdomen was cut. An autopsy revealed that she was shot and killed by a single gunshot in the back.
The bullet penetrated her left lung and then her heart. The coroner remains confident that Andrews died quickly without suffering.
"It was cut horizontally and that's the only way to have gotten the baby out," Marcial said. He said that he did not believe that the cut into the abdomen was done professionally.
Police said that, as of Wednesday night, they believe Bica acted alone, fooling her husband into believing that the baby was theirs. Police said that they have no evidence to prove that Bica's husband, or anybody else, was involved.
One week ago, Theresa had paged her husband at work and said that a woman had called inquiring about a 1999 Jeep Wrangler that they were trying to sell. Jon found the house open and his wife and vehicle gone when he arrived home from work that afternoon.
The keys to the Jeep were found in Bica's purse, according to police. They had found the vehicle earlier in the investigation about a block from the Andrews' home.
As officers arrived at Bica's house, they heard what sounded like a gunshot and Bica's husband, Thomas, shouting her name. Thomas Bica and police forced open a locked bedroom door upstairs and found her shot.
An autopsy is pending, but police said that she shot herself.
Andrews' body was found about two hours later, buried in a shallow grave in the unattached garage of the small, white colonial-style house that has an American flag hanging on a pole near the entrance.
A trail of blood was found between the house and the garage, according to an official close to the investigation.
Michelle Bica's mother said that her daughter has been treated for mental illness on five different occasions.
Michelle Bica's uncle, Richard McKay, said that when Michelle was 12 years old she came home to find her father dead in the garage. He said that Michelle was never the same after that incident.
McKay said that he visited Michelle at her Ravenna home this past Saturday.
"I went up and held the baby," McKay said. "I wanted to see the baby. I fed the baby with milk and held the baby. It's a nice-looking baby. I thought it was their baby. She led me to believe it was their baby. I didn't know any different."
There is still no indication at this point that the women had known each other, police said.
The two couples live about four blocks apart in a section of older homes in Ravenna -- a city of about 12,000 people.
No charges have been filed against Thomas Bica, 41, a corrections officer for the Portage County Sheriff's Department. He was questioned and released Tuesday morning.
Police said that Thomas Bica met the former Michelle Zonko when she was in the Portage County jail from April 24, 1994, to Oct. 11, 1994, for a felony conviction for receiving stolen property.
Outside of the Andrews home, visitors placed flowers, cards and a teddy bear. One note to the baby said, "You will be truly loved in Ravenna. Our hearts are with you and your family."
A Robinson Memorial Hospital spokesman said that donations have been pouring in for Oscar Gavin. Individuals and corporations have donated everything from stuffed animals to formula.
Family members are still working out funeral arrangements for Theresa Andrews. The family's lawyer said that the funeral will be held sometime this weekend.
Jon Andrews' brother said that the baby boy is beautiful and healthy. He said that Jon Andrews is worried about everything from making his wife's funeral arrangements to how he'll get his baby home tomorrow. The car seat the couple planned on using is still in the Jeep, which is police evidence.
