baby murder-probe
Mother arrested on charges of smothering newborn daughter to death
JEJU, South Korea, Aug. 16 (Yonhap) -- A woman has been arrested on the southern island of Jeju on charges of smothering her newborn daughter to death in late 2020 and discarding her body at a seaport, wrapped in a shopping bag, police officials said Wednesday.
The 26-year-old mother is accused of murdering the 3-month-old baby in December 2020 by covering her face with a blanket. The same day, the mother allegedly wrapped the baby's body with a blanket, put it into a shopping bag and threw it away onto a heap of concrete tetrapods at a seaport near her house.
The baby's birth had been registered with the government.
Police opened an investigation into the case upon a report from the Seogwipo city government in Jeju that the baby, who would be 2 years old if she was alive, had not showed up for regular medical checkups for a long time.
In prior investigations, she told police that she had experienced economic difficulties after giving birth, and she had to vacate her rented home by the day after her crime due to overdue rents.
A man who she pinpointed as the baby's biological father admitted that they had dated but said he was not aware of her pregnancy.
The port where she said she threw the baby's body is now reclaimed land.
The Jeju Provincial Police Agency arrested the woman the previous day on charges of murder and disposal of a dead body.
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