NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WPRI) — The mother of an infant who was found dead at Fort Taber Park in New Bedford late last year faced a judge Monday morning, according to Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III.

Daniela Michell Escobar-Mejia, 22, has been charged with improper disposal of a body and was released on personal recognizance.

The baby’s body was found in December by a woman and her niece who were walking along a path near the water.

Quinn said the woman noticed the blanket, as well as “an odor of decay,” in the thicket of brush along the walking path. Inside the blanket was the male infant’s decaying body wrapped in a plastic shopping bag, he added.

Investigators linked Escobar-Mejia to the infant through DNA analysis and by reviewing the park’s surveillance footage. It is believed the infant was left in the park more than a month prior to his body being discovered, according to Quinn.

The infant’s cause of death could not be determined due to the state of decomposition, according to Quinn. The medical examiner also couldn’t be ascertain whether he was alive prior to being dumped at the park.

“I want to thank investigators for their efforts in this very sad and tragic case,” Quinn said.

Escobar-Mejia is due back in court on Sept. 12.

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