By Kaya 959 News
A 30-year-old woman has been arrested after she allegedly assaulted her newborn baby in a mall bathroom.
According to police in Polokwane, the woman and her mother visited Kunjani Clinic in Malamulele on Monday.
“It is alleged she went to the clinic to consult and find out why her tummy was growing big. This after she was allegedly denying she was expecting,” police spokesperson Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo says.
Mojapelo says while the pair were waiting for a consultation, the suspect told her mother that she needed to go to the bathroom, which was located at the adjacent Masingita Mall.
“The suspect reportedly gave birth to a baby girl on her own and started brutally assaulting her. The baby’s cries alerted the cleaners who immediately rushed to the bathroom and discovered the gruesome incident.”
READ: Father in court for killing toddler, stuffing body in ceiling
Newborn rushed to hospital
Police were immediately called to the scene. The woman and her “badly injured” baby were then taken to a local hospital.
The newborn baby girl was transferred to Mankweng Hospital, where she later died.
“The woman was later discharged from the hospital and was immediately arrested on a charge of attempted murder. The charge has since been changed to murder after the police learnt about the passing of the baby in hospital,” says Mojapelo.
The suspect is due in the Malamulele Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 30 June 2021.



