ALBANY, Ore. — An Albany woman was arrested Saturday in the alleged murder of her 3-year-old child, authorities said.
Rebekah Gasperino, 32, was pulled over in a traffic stop in the city of Albany at around 2:30 a.m. Saturday. Police said they came to believe that Gasperino was a danger to herself and others, and that they needed to check on her child immediately. Officers conducted a welfare check at Gasperino's home in the area of Sun Place Southeast and 20th Avenue in Albany and found the body of her 3-year-old daughter.
Gasperino was taken into custody and is being held without bail at the Linn County Jail on suspicion of first degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and criminal mistreatment.
Police said the child's father and extended family members were notified and are cooperating with the investigation.
Some people set up a small memorial for the child at the home with flowers, balloons and stuffed animals.
Grace Smith, a reporter for KEZI, a news station in Eugene, spoke to some neighbors over the weekend, many of whom said they were shocked and that they didn't know Gasperino well because she kept to herself.
"Everyone is pretty much in shock," said John Holstead, who said he's lived in the neighborhood for years. "They were pretty private. You'd see them once in a while, but they kept to themselves."
"I just can't believe it; that's right across the street," said Verna, a neighbor. "We didn't know these people very well because the lady was always inside."
"It's like a movie," said neighbor Cheyenne Freeman. "That's what happens in movies. People being killed across the street. That's just shocking that that would happen in our neighborhood."
Albany is a city of 56,000 people located about 65 miles south of Portland.