Woman jailed for hiding her baby's body for 4 years

A woman accused of causing her newborn's death and then hiding the baby's body was sentenced to a four-year prison term by a local court, officials said Thursday.

Daejeon District Court on Oct. 26 found the defendant guilty of violating Article 4 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes, death resulting from child abuse. The defendant in her 30s was held responsible for the death of her child, who died a week after being born in September 2019.

The defendant gave birth to the baby at her home in Seo-gu, Daejeon, but never reported the birth or the death of the child. She hid the body inside a carry-on suitcase before leaving the residence soon after.

Her landlord, after failing to reach her, found the body on Oct. 3 of last year while going through the defendant's belongings and reported the case to the police. Police tracked down the defendant and arrested her at a residential area in Seo-gu, Daejeon, the following day.

"While the defendant cited several reasons (for not being able to raise the child), such as not having sufficient knowledge to foster a child, it is unacceptable considering that she is a legal adult. ... Her reasons cannot at all justify her neglecting a child to the extent that the baby died just days after being born," the court said in its verdict.

The court also ordered the defendant to take 40 hours of child abuse prevention programs and banned her from being employed at child-related institutions for five years after being released from jail.