Docs: 22-month-old Shelbyville child found in ‘significant state of decomposition,’ Mother charged with neglect

SHELBYVILLE, Ind. — More information has been released regarding what led to the death of a 22-month-old child in Shelbyville, which caused the child’s mother to be arrested.

According to court documents filed in Shelby County on Tuesday, 28-year-old Sophie Igou was charged with:

• Two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, each a Level 1 felony
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• Three counts of neglect of a dependent, each a Level 6 felony.

On the evening of Sept. 17, officers from the Shelbyville Police Department were called to a home on Hale Road on a report of an unresponsive child. According to previous reports, a child, identified as 22-month-old Jasper Igou, was found dead after officers were met outside by the child’s mother, identified as Sophie Igou.

The court documents indicate that Sophie Igou initially told dispatch that her “baby (was) dead,” coming after she went and checked on the child. When officers arrived at the Hale Road home, they reportedly found Sophie Igou in the driveway, holding Jasper Igou, who was wrapped in a sheet.

At the time, Jasper Igou was not breathing and “appeared to have been deceased for a significant amount of time.” The court documents stated that the child’s body was in a “significant state of decomposition” as a result of apparent “extreme malnourishment.”

The court documents state that law enforcement believes that Jasper Igou had not received medical treatment since January 2024. The child reportedly had pronounced protrusion of bones, sunken eyes, thin sagging skin and “near complete absence of subcutaneous fat.”

During a search of Sophie Igou’s home, the documents said that law enforcement found the home’s conditions to be “extremely poor,” with the inside covered in refuse and infested with insects. The crib also allegedly had decomposing material in it.

“The state of the premises appeared to be entirely unsafe/unhealthy as a domicile for human beings, let alone small children,” the documents said.

In an interview with Sophie Igou, she told law enforcement that she reportedly had three children living with her. She said that Jasper Igou recently had trouble holding down food, but could not take her children to the doctor because she was “trying to get her bearings as a single mom.”

“Sophie appeared to act surprised when (law enforcement) told her that Jasper had to have been deceased for a significant period of time prior to her calling 911,” the documents said. “When confronted with the condition of Jasper’s body, Sophie stated ‘did I do this?'”

According to previous reports, the Shelby County Coroner’s Office recently conducted an autopsy of Jasper Igou. The official cause and manner of the child’s death is expected to be finalized in the coming weeks.

“Pediatric death investigations are complex and involve multiple factors in determining the cause and manner of death,” the office said in an update provided to FOX59/CBS4 on Monday. “These include pathology, toxicology testing, the review of reports from multiple agencies and a detailed analysis of medical records.”