The Paripally police on Tuesday arrested Reshma, a 22-year-old resident of Kalluvathukal, after a DNA report confirmed her as the biological mother of a newborn who was found abandoned last January.
The one-day-old infant was seen on the premises of the house where Reshma was living with her family and he had died the same day due to infection. Though the accused had feigned ignorance initially, she later confessed to the crime.
“We used scientific methods to prove the crime. We collected blood samples of nine suspects and the baby’s DNA profile completely matched with Reshma and her husband Vishnu,” said Station House Officer T.Sathikumar.
The baby boy, who weighed 3 kg, was found in a heap of dry leaves near the house on January 5. The infant had sustained insect bites and though he was first taken to the Government Medical College Hospital, Paripally, and later to SUT, Thiruvananthapuram, his life could not be saved.
“The baby was left there one entire night and his umbilical cord was seen at 10-metre distance. According to her confession, Reshma wanted to get rid of the baby as she was planning to leave her home with Anandu, her Facebook friend,” said Mr.Sathikuamr.
Her family, including her husband, was unaware of her pregnancy.
“We are cross-checking all statements and since the accused is COVID positive, there are some technical difficulties to conduct interrogation. We will also get in touch with the cyber cell to find the identity of her Facebook friend,” he added.
