Mother of baby found dumped in garbage is jailed

Dubai: A babysitter has been jailed for leaving her newborn unfed, incorrectly severing her umbilical cord which endangered her life and dumping her body in a garbage bag.

The Dubai Court of First Instance sentenced the 34-year-old Filipina babysitter, L.M., to one year in jail after she confessed to the charges. She will be deported after serving her sentence.

Earlier she hesitantly told the court "I am guilty."

The Public Prosecution charged her with causing her newborn's death because she failed to feed her properly and incorrectly severed the umbilical cord thus endangering the life of her newborn who died shortly after she was secretly delivered in a bathroom.

She was additionally charged with throwing the baby's body in the garbage.

A curious housemaid, Y.Q., 22, who also worked for L.M's sponsor, found the newborn's body in a garbage bag.

The forensic doctor who checked the baby's body testified: "The newborn was breathing normally after she was delivered. She died because she wasn't breastfed for hours, her umbilical cord was unhealthily cut and she could have also suffocated in the bag."

Y.Q. testified: "The accused who spent hours inside the toilet claimed that she suffered from indigestion problems. Later we discovered that she had secretly delivered a baby in the bathroom. I found the newborn's body inside two plastic bags which the suspect threw in the garbage. I also found the blood-soaked clothes which the mother wore when she entered the toilet."

The housemaid reported the matter to her sponsor who informed the police. The ruling is still subject to appeal.