Father of dead baby said ‘I didn't do it' on store surveillance video, witnesses say

NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — Newly obtained surveillance video shows the father of a baby found dead in the woods after the discovery of her body.

Chris McNabb, 22, is considered a person of interest in the death of his 2-week-old daughter Caliyah McNabb.

Investigators say McNabb tried to hide from police after he learned volunteers found the infant’s body in the woods.

The surveillance video shows McNabb walked inside a Food Mart convenience store and told the clerk he "didn't do it."

“He said to everybody here that he didn't kill his baby,” said Kathryn Wesley, who was inside the store when McNabb entered around 7 p.m. Sunday. “He was soaking wet. He had on black pants, a blank shirt and a hat,” Wesley described.

The clerk, Julie Hannah, noticed McNabb because of his facial tattoos.

“He just said, "Do you recognize me? You know me?,” Hannah explained.

Fearing for her safety, Hannah told McNabb she did not recognize him. She said he appeared agitated and kept raising his voice.

“He was just screaming and hollering, “I didn't do it, I didn't do it. Y'all are gonna look crazy when you realize who do it!” she said.

Caliyah McNabb was reported missing Saturday. That evening, McNabb made a plea on a local TV station.

"I want my kid, man!" he told WSBTV.

On Sunday afternoon, search volunteers discovered Caliyah's body in the woods near her home. She was 2-weeks-old.

Investigators say her father ran away and turned up at the gas station four hours later.

McNabb is jailed on a probation violation from Bartow County. Investigators said there's not enough evidence to connect him to Caliyah's death, but he remains a person of interest.

Caliyah's mother, Courtney Bell, gave a statement to the sheriff's office. She is not considered a person of interest.

Investigators say they'll have a better idea of where to go next with the case after the medical examiner reveals the cause of death.

Cox Media Group