IDENTITY OF DEAD BABY STILL UNKNOWN; INFANT FOUND MARCH 22 IN AQUEDUCT; CAUSE OF DEATH REMAINS UNDER INVESTIGATION.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

Covered in plastic in a refrigerated crypt, Jane Doe No. 21 waits her turn to be claimed and finally put to rest.

Found three weeks ago floating in the California Aqueduct, the tiny baby remains unidentified and the cause of her death uncertain.

``We are hoping to locate a mother,'' said sheriff's homicide Detective Barry Wish. ``We don't know why anyone would want to do this.''

A man and his children fishing March 22 in the California Aqueduct off Sierra Highway found the tiny body caught in a pumping station channel.

Coroner's officials hope toxicology and tissue tests of samples taken during the autopsy may lead to some answers about what killed her. Since the cause of death has not been established, it has not been ruled a homicide.

``We're still investigating whether it was a stillborn, whether it was live when it was thrown in,'' Wish said. ``It may not be ruled a murder.''

All that investigators have been able to determine was that the baby was a female Caucasian or possible Latino, probably about 1 month old but weighing only about 5 pounds.

Since the body's discovery, homicide detectives have talked to doctors in the Antelope Valley and made a televised plea to residents, asking for help in locating anyone who might have been pregnant but no longer has a child.

Baby Jane Doe will remain in her refrigerated crypt in Los Angeles until the mother is located, or until the county or private agencies step in to provide a proper burial. Coroner officials have held unclaimed bodies for as long as six months hoping a family member can be located.

Anyone with information on the baby or its mother is asked to call the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office at [phone] or the Los Angeles County sheriff's Homicide Bureau at [phone].