A 32-year-old foreign national was tracked down and arrested by Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA) just 17 hours after abandoning her newborn near a stormwater drain manhole.
A Reaction Officer on bike patrol along Wick Street in Verulam CBD discovered the infant hanging on the edge of a manhole, which led to a two-meter drop into the drain. The baby was immediately rescued and rushed to a government hospital for medical care.
On the night of Sunday, February 9, the RUSA Operations Center received an anonymous tip from a medical facility, reporting that the widely circulated image of the rescued infant resembled a baby born via cesarean section.
Acting on this lead and other gathered intelligence, Reaction Officers launched a search for the mother.
By Monday morning, officers had identified the woman as a foreign national who had relocated to South Africa from Maseru, Lesotho, two years ago. Reports indicated that she was planning to flee the country.
With the help of an informer, Reaction Officers tracked her to Hazelmere, KwaZulu-Natal, where she was found in possession of a friend’s passport and a plastic hospital tag bearing the newborn’s name.
During questioning by a female officer, the woman admitted to entering South Africa illegally in 2022, leaving behind her 11-year-old and 5-year-old children in Maseru to seek employment. She worked as a machinist in a textile business before becoming pregnant with her third child.
She claimed that during her pregnancy, her boyfriend denied paternity, accusing her of infidelity. After the baby was born, he cut off communication with her.
The woman admitted to placing the newborn in a black bin bag with the intention of discarding the child in the stormwater drain. However, as she approached the drain, a passing vehicle startled her, causing her to throw the baby near the manhole before fleeing the scene.
She is currently in custody under Verulam Cas 183/02/2025 for child abandonment.
