The mother of a newborn baby found stuffed inside a backpack in a Fayette County creek eight years ago has been charged with homicide in the infant's death.

State police arrested Sarah Sue Hawk, 25, of Uniontown, yesterday, using their DNA analysis to determine that she is the mother of the newborn, whom police called "Jane Doe."

In June 2000, a man looking for minnows in a small creek next to Yauger Hollow Road found the newborn wrapped in plastic bags and a flannel shirt inside of a backpack. An autopsy confirmed that the baby had been about 8 1/2 months at birth.

State police said they believe the baby died between May 27 and June 4, 2000.

Ms. Hawk is also charged with concealing the death of a child. She was arraigned and is being held in the Fayette County Prison without bond.