Mother of sewage pipe baby may avoid charges

The mother of the newborn baby boy rescued from a sewage pipe will probably not face charges according to the investigation results so far, local police told the Global Times Wednesday.

The baby fell into the sewage pipe of a public toilet in a building in Pujiang county, Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, on Monday after the 22-year-old single mother gave birth alone.

"So far, according to the results of the investigation, and her explanation of what happened, we won't charge her with anything," Xiang Jiangsong, a police officer from Punan police station in Pujiang county told the Global Times.

Police revealed that it was the mother, whose name has not been released, who alerted her landlord to the fact that something was trapped in the pipe, but she did not admit it was her baby. 

According to Xiang, the mother told her landlord she heard a "kitten-like" sound in the fourth-floor squat lavatory and the landlord called the police and firefighters for help.

He confirmed that the mother was present at the scene for the entire rescue, but she did not identify herself.

"There were a lot of other people at the scene, and everyone looked worried and concerned, so we didn't notice anything different about her," said Xiang.

"I did try to catch him when he fell, but he was too slippery. I even used a mop to help me," the mother was quoted as saying in the Hangzhou-based Qianjiang Evening News.

The woman is now suffering from a high fever due to postnatal complications while the local police are still searching for the father, said Xiang. The pair are not in a relationship.

He said police traced her after finding her bloody pants in her apartment during a search of the building. 

"She was too humiliated to call police. After all, it's a premarital pregnancy. Girls like her are an easy target for public criticism," said Xiang.

A report from 119.china.com.cn, an official website for the fire department under the Ministry of Public Security, said that the baby was badly bruised and was breathing heavily when saved.

A nurse from Pujiang People's Hospital told the Global Times that the baby is still receiving treatment, and his condition is stable.