Stepmother Indicted in Death of Zahra Baker in North Carolina

HICKORY, N.C. (AP) -- The stepmother of a disabled North Carolina girl was indicted Monday on a murder charge in the girl's death.

Elisa Baker was charged with second-degree murder. Authorities planned to discuss the case at a news conference later in the day.

Elisa Baker had previously been charged with obstructing justice in the investigation of Zahra Baker's death. The 10-year-old was reported missing in October, and police later found her remains in different locations in western North Carolina.

The indictment cites aggravating factors, saying Baker had a history of physical, verbal and psychological abuse of Zahra. And it says she desecrated Zahra's body to hinder detection and prosecution of the killing.

A search warrant unsealed last month said that Elisa Baker led police to the places where they found Zahra's remains. She claimed that her husband, Adam Baker, dismembered the body. Adam Baker has denied that.

The warrant also said that cell phone records indicate Adam Baker was not in the locations where Zahra's remains were found on the day Elisa Baker indicated, but that cell phone records showed she was present in those locations.

Attorneys for Elisa Baker did not return calls seeking comment Monday.

Adam Baker is free on bond, facing numerous charges not related to his daughter, who needed a prosthetic leg and two hearing aids because of a battle with cancer. He moved to North Carolina with Zahra from Australia after meeting Elisa online.