DOVER, Del. – A Dover woman has been charged with abusing a corpse police believe to be that of a young boy.
The Delaware State Police Homicide Unit began an investigation on July 9, following a missing child complaint. According to police, detectives received information that a woman was no longer pregnant and her 2-year-old child was missing. Police reportedly responded to the call at a home in the unit block of Squire Circle in the Royal Grant Development in Dover.
Police say they contacted a relative of homeowner Karen N. Hooks, 33. According to police, the relative was concerned because she claimed Hooks was due to give birth in June but the baby was nowhere to be found. According to the authorities, the relative also said she had not seen Hooks' 2-year-old son since August 2011.
Detectives said they contacted Hooks on July 3, who told troopers her son, Justice Hooks, was in the care of a friend in Smyrna. Police said Hooks denied the claim that she was ever pregnant.
Authorities said they were unable to verify Hooks' story and obtained a search warrant for the house on Squire Circle. During this search, police say they recovered a suspiciously wrapped package located in a storage area shared by Hooks' female roommate. Authorities said that in the package, police found what appeared to human remains.
According to police, the remains were removed by the State Medical Examiner's Office, and a post-mortem evaluation concluded that they were the remains of a male child, at least a year old.
Court documents obtained by WBOC show the assistant medical examiner determined the baby died from blunt force trauma. Also documented, the roommate told police on October 10, 2011, Hooks' child was confined in a corner, blocked in with boxes and a table, lying on the floor in such a way as to restrict his movement.
Hooks has been charged with abusing a corpse and is being held on $1,000 bail. Additional charges are possible as police continue their investigation.
Karen N. Hooks, 33, of Dover, Del. (Photo:Delaware State Police)
