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Trial begins for man accused of killing 3-month-old

Posted at 6:48 AM, Apr 24, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-24 12:00:44-04

INDIANAPOLIS -- The trial for a man accused of killing his 3-month-old daughter began Monday morning in Marion County.

Jeffrey Fairbanks, 45, faces charges of murder and neglect of a dependent resulting in death after Janna Rivera disappeared in May 2015.

PREVIOUS | Murder charges filed against father of missing Baby Janna

Police have not been able to find Rivera. Fairbanks told family members he buried his daughter in a cornfield, but later admitted it was a lie. 

Officers with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department searched through landfills, and divers looked in ponds near Fairbanks' house.

IMPD found "nothing of evidentiary value," a police spokesperson said at the time.

MORE | Landfill search suspended after nothing found

Fairbanks told police he would place a pillow on the baby's face when she was crying to calm her down.

Family members told police Fairbanks "usually slaps her in the mouth to shut up," and yelled at the baby when she was crying or fussy, court documents say.

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