A woman in her 30s arrested for abandoning her newborn at a garbage disposal and recycling area immediately after giving birth was sent to prosecutors for potential indictment on charges of attempted murder, police said Friday.

The 31-year-old is accused of placing her newborn baby inside a plastic bag after covering his face with a towel, then abandoning him at the recycling area near her residence in Suwon, 30 kilometers south of Seoul, on May 31.

A neighbor passing by the scene heard the baby crying and reported it to police, and the woman was apprehended at her home later that day.

Police initially applied charges of violating the Child Welfare Act against the mother but later changed it to attempted murder following testimonies from doctors, who claimed the newborn could have died had the rescue been delayed any further.

Police also said tightly sealing a baby in a plastic bag and abandoning him was clearly an intentional act of attempted murder.

During questioning, the woman told police she though
t she would have a hard time raising the baby and that she had ditched him with his face covered because he was crying.

Meanwhile, the police also questioned the father of the newborn, who claimed he had no knowledge of the pregnancy.

The couple allegedly dated for several months last year and parted ways in December, according to police.

Police plan to continue interrogating the father of the newborn, along with the suspect’s parents, who are known to be residing in the same house as the suspect.

Source: Yonhap News Agency