Dead baby's ashes stolen from grieving parent's Central Coast home found

Carlye Doney’s son Andrew Jay died in 2002 at 20 weeks old. His ashes were one of the few small memories his family had of him.

But the ashes were taken when the home of Doney and her three daughters, in Narara, on the NSW Central Coast, was ransacked on Sunday.

Doney said her daughters had burst into tears when told Andrew, or AJ’s ashes had been taken along with computers, phones, iPods, cameras and other items.

It was an agonising 24 hours before the box of ashes were found, by a boy wandering around bushland near Reeves Street.

 “Apparently he went home and told his mother and she called police and they returned them,” a relieved Doney said.

“I’m just so grateful to have them back. Everything else can be replaced but it’s just a huge relief to have AJ’s ashes back.”