Police arrest mother after one-day-old baby found deceased
The newborn baby was allegedly last with her mother on Buck Road, Lotus River.
Image: File
Police have arrested a woman on charges of child neglect after she allegedly lost track of her newborn baby girl following discharged from hospital on Saturday.
According to reports, the 31-year-old mom and her baby were last seen travelling in a taxi from Retreat to Lotus River. They got off at the corner of 4th Avenue and Buck Road.
However, the mom allegedly returned home without the newborn baby, whose whereabouts remain unknown.
A family member said before the mother was arrested, it seemed like she was losing her mind and could not remember everything correctly.
A one day-old baby was found in a drain in Lotus River.
Image: Supplied
The source added: “We tried to get her to remember where she put the baby. All we ask is if you can please go into your communities to check in the streets if the baby is there.
“The baby was not kidnapped. We ask that people not make their own accusations. The mom is not 100 percent, as she could not remember things; all she remembers is that she came to Buck Road with the child.
“She is not a suspect; it is her own child.”
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said that Grassy Park police are investigating the case, reporting: “The circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the child are under investigation. We can confirm that a 31-year-old female was arrested and will appear in the Wynberg Magistrates’ court once she has been charged.”
But things took a tragic turn on Sunday evening when police confirmed to that the baby girl was found dead in a stormwater drain at the corner of 2nd Avenue and Antelope Street in Lotus River on Sunday afternoon around 2pm.
“The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation. The mother of the child remains in custody.”