A 40-year old mother of eight was arrested yesterday after the decomposing remains of a full-term baby were found in the septic tank at her Victoria Street, Albouystown home.
Police have detained the woman, who had been pregnant and was due to deliver at any time, after she gave investigators conflicting versions of how the baby boy ended up in the septic tank.
Neighbours became aware of the decomposing body when a dog fetched one of its arms into his owner’s yard, located nearby. Shortly after, a drug addict announced that there was a baby in the septic tank.
The woman, who did not deny being the mother of the baby, told investigators initially that she went to defecate and the baby came down, as a result of which she flushed it down the toilet. Ranks who went to the scene early yesterday morning following the discovery on Tuesday night were not satisfied with the woman’s explanation. When pressed further, she told investigators that the child was stillborn and she placed it in the septic tank, this newspaper was told.
The partially covered septic tank was overflowing and surrounded by grass.
A neighbour told Stabroek News that just before 5pm on Tuesday, the dog was seen running through the streets with the child’s entire arm before ending up in its owner’s yard. The woman, who asked not to be named, said that it was shortly after this that a neighbourhood drug addict said that there was a baby in the alleyway. The woman said that everyone ran into the yard, located at Lot 133 Victoria Street, and found the baby’s remains in the septic tank but no attempts were made to move it. She recalled that the woman who was held was among those who went to the septic tank to get a look and after that she and her children went into the house and locked the door.
After removing the baby’s remains with the use of a spade, police took away the woman, who by then was in tears. Stabroek News understands that she lived with four of her children and a sister.
One of her other children collapsed when she arrived at the home.
Based on what this newspaper was told, the baby was in the septic tank for about six days.
The neighbour said two nights earlier she “started getting a stink smell” and although she sprayed disinfectant in the yard, it did not reduce the odour.
Residents also said the behaviour of the woman in custody was suspicious over the past few days. One neighbour recalled that recently the woman was at a bingo game when she began experiencing pains. She then left. Another recalled seeing her “modeling” up and down the street in the rain on Saturday and had noted how different she looked. She said she remembered asking herself how the woman could be in the rain when she was pregnant and due anytime. The resident added that she had last seen the woman last Wednesday. She did not see her last Thursday or Friday.
Residents yesterday questioned the woman’s explanation to police, charging that instead of going to the cemetery located not far away, she chose a septic tank.
They had their own theories of what may have transpired and told Stabroek News that the mother should have either informed someone or contacted the police, even if the baby was stillborn.
Police are awaiting the results of a post-mortem examination in order to decide how to move forward.
