Paternal grandfather of New Mexico baby tossed into dumpster seeks custody
The grandfather of the newborn who was tossed into a New Mexico dumpster by his teen mom has revealed that his 16-year-old son is the child’s dad — and that his family is seeking custody.
Oscar Astorga, 50, said that his son Stephen is the boy’s father — and that the 16-year-old, who broke up with Alexis Avila, 18, in August 2021, had no idea that she had been pregnant, the Daily Mail reported.
“We have nothing to hide but we can’t comment right now,” Astorga told the outlet in an interview published Wednesday.
The grandfather said the family has retained a lawyer and is seeking custody of the infant they’ve named Saul, who is recovering at a hospital in Lubbock, Texas.
“Of course we’re trying to get custody. Of course. He is my grandson,” Astorga told the outlet. “That’s why we can’t comment on anything because we’re trying to get my grandson.”
Avila was captured in shocking video throwing a trash bag containing the baby into the container on North Thorp Street in Hobbs about 2 p.m. Friday, according to charging documents obtained by The Post.
The infant was discovered — with his umbilical cord still attached — by three people who were combing through the dumpster in 36-degree weather. The child has been listed in stable condition.
Avila claimed to police that she panicked when she unexpectedly gave birth and threw her newborn away. She has been charged with attempted murder.
Meanwhile, Stephen thought Avila had miscarried, according to the Daily Mail, which cited text messages between the boy and a friend.
But his grandfather said that since the heartbreaking incident, the family has been getting death threats on social media.
“We haven’t done anything wrong. My friend saw them. These people on social media,” his grandfather said.
The baby received a blood transfusion and was put on oxygen before he was transferred from a local hospital to the one in Texas because it has a more advanced neonatal intensive care unit, the Daily Mail reported.
Meanwhile, Avila’s mother also spoke out for the first time, telling the Daily Mail that “everyone makes mistakes.”
Martha Avila, 47, also claimed she had no clue her daughter was pregnant.
“Yeah, it has been a shock,” she said.
“People can preach all they want, they can judge all they want but we only care about the judgment of one,” Martha told the outlet.
Avila’s friends said the teen had been open about her pregnancy before she stopped going to school in mid-December.
“I heard her talk about being pregnant around late September, early October,” a classmate told the outlet. “She never expressed that it was a bad thing that she was pregnant.”
When police arrived at Avila’s home after responding to the dumping scene, her parents told them she was sleeping and that she had been sick with stomach pains for the past week.
She told police she had been in abdominal pain and even visited a doctor, who broke the news of her pregnancy to her on Jan. 6.
The girl said she was experiencing some stomach pains and unexpectedly gave birth in the bathroom of her home.
Panicked, she cut the umbilical cord, wrapped the baby in a towel and put it in the trash bag — which she sealed closed with a hair tie — before she started “driving around,” according to the documents.
“When asking Alexis what she thought would eventually happen to the baby by placing him inside of a plastic bag and dumping him, Alexis remained silent and couldn’t answer. An indication Alexis was well aware the baby would have died as a result,” police wrote in the documents.
Her mother told police the ex was no longer permitted at their home after he allegedly hit her sometime in June.
Avila, who is out on bond, is scheduled to appear in court in Lovington, New Mexico, on Wednesday for a detention hearing.
