A proclaimed anti-abortion activist was indicted on federal charges this week after five fetuses were found inside a Capitol Hill-area home, according to published news reports.
The disturbing discovery was made on Wednesday when the Metropolitan Police Department received a tip about a “bio-hazard” material at the residence, CBS News reported.
The occupant of the home was identified as 28-year-old Lauren Handy, police said, WUSA9 News reported.
On Wednesday, Handy was one of nine people charged by a federal grand jury with one count of conspiracy against rights and one count of violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, CBS reported.
The federal law, more commonly known as the FACE Act, prohibits physically obstructing or using the threat of force to intimidate or interfere with a person seeking reproductive health services, the Justice Department said in a news release, the news outlet reported.
“If convicted of the offenses, the defendants each face up to a maximum of 11 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $350,000,” the Justice Department said in a news release Wednesday,” CNN reported.
During Wednesday’s bust, Handy told WUSA9 News that she expected the raid to happen “sooner or later.” She also declined to disclose what was in the coolers, and stated that “people would freak out when they heard,” the news outlet reported.
The fetuses were collected by the Washington, DC chief medical examiner’s office, police said. They also said the investigation is ongoing, CNN reported.
DC Police Executive Assistant Chief Ashan Benedict told reporters on Thursday that the fetuses were aborted in accordance with DC law, the news outlet reported.
According to the indictment, prosecutors said, Handy had called a clinic [Washington Surgi- Clinic] days before the incident pretending to be a prospective patient, named “Hazel Jenkins,” who needed reproductive health services, and made a 9 a.m appointment on Oct. 22, 2020, according to court documents, CNN reported.
On Oct. 22, 2020, Handy arrived with eight other protestors in her group at the clinic, according to court documents, CNN reported. They reportedly forcibility pushed their way inside and began blocking the doors, according to the indictment, the news outlet reported.
The indictment alleged that five of the anti-abortion activists chained themselves on chairs to block the treatment area, CNN reported. Other protestors blocked the employee entrance to prevent other patients from coming inside, the news outlet reported.
Another anti-abortion activist blocked people from coming into the waiting room, prosecutors said, CBS reported.
It was not immediately clear if the defendants have attorneys who could comment on the allegations, NBC Washington reported.
On Thursday, the group Progressive Anti-Abortion Uprising (PAAU) where Hardy is Director of Activism tweetedthat they “will address the claims surrounding the 5 deceased children found at Lauren Handy’s apartment at a press conference in D.C. on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m.”