Court discloses: Three infants left in London during seven years are related
A court disclosed on Monday that newborn Elsa, discovered abandoned in a park during frosty winter weather in January, is related to two other infants who were left at similar locations in Newham, London in 2017 and 2019. The three babies, named Roman and Harry in local news, were discovered safely and were soon given care. Elsa's two older siblings have since been adopted.
The court decision sheds light on a chilling pattern of infants being discarded in the London borough of Newham. It started in September 2017 when Harry was found wrapped in a blanket in a small park. The authorities requested the mother to come forward, but she never did.
One and a half years later, Roman was located in another park close by, also wrapped in a blanket and a shopping bag. "The child had a frosty forehead... (it was) snowing shortly afterward," the individual who found her and alerted police shared with BBC in 2019.
In January this year, Elsa was discovered, covered in towels, by a dog walker just before 9 p.m., as police had revealed earlier. "That person kept the baby girl warm until London Ambulance Service paramedics arrived and checked her over before taking her to the hospital," Chief Superintendent Simon Crick stated in a press release. "I am grateful to the citizens who stayed at the scene to speak with officers and medics - your actions helped save the baby's life," Crick added.
Similar to Roman, Elsa was left in freezing temperatures. The Metropolitan Police declared at the time that it was "highly likely" that Elsa was born after a "concealed pregnancy," according to PA Media.
A week after Elsa's discovery, police asked for help to identify a woman "wearing a large dark coat with a light colored scarf or hood around her neck," along with a rucksack, around the time when the baby was found. "It is still believed she could hold crucial information about how Elsa ended up where she was discovered," the authorities mentioned.
DNA analysis confirmed the three babies as relatives.
Initially, the law enforcement knew the three children were siblings, but on Monday, a judge decided to lift reporting restrictions, enabling the media to publish details about their connection.
"The abandonment of a baby in this country is a very, very rare occurrence, and there are years when no children are abandoned, making the story of a baby being abandoned a matter of public interest," PA Media quoted the judge as saying.
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The chilling pattern of infant abandonment in the UK was highlighted with the discovery of Elsa, who was left in London in January 2023. This unfortunate occurrence follows similar instances in the world of the UK, such as Harry being found in 2017 and Roman in 2019.
Despite the unfortunate incidents occurring in the UK, or rather the 'world' in broader terms, it's noteworthy that such instances of infant abandonment are relatively rare in the UK.
