A 34-year-old woman yesterday shocked a Nakuru court after she pleaded guilty to charges of dumping her new-born baby girl minutes after birth.
Mary Akinyi, who appeared before chief magistrate Samuel Mungai, admitted that on October 13, 2014 at Alphega sisal estate in Rongai sub-county, she dumped the infant in a pit latrine.
The prosecution told the court that the infant was saved by a neighbour, Kate Ndanu, who had reportedly visited the latrine to answer to a call of nature at around 3am.
The court heard that Ndanu, who was distracted by a cry of a baby, was prompted to alert Kennedy Chirchir, a security officer in the estate, about the incident.
The duo are said to have rescued the infant who was still alive and wrapped in a black polythene paper.
The court further heard that the baby was then rushed to a nearby dispensary for treatment and was later transferred to Rift Valley General hospital for specialised treatment.
The prosecution informed the court that the incident was later reported to Sisal estate police post before the accused was traced and intercepted by the police.
The court was also told that the infant, who was in a critical condition, is now rejuvenating at the hospital’s baby nursery.
The accused had given birth to the child but concealed it.
In mitigation, the accused pleaded for leniency and revealed that her husband passed on early this year and was left with six children to take care of.
“l was not able to cater for the needs of my six children and that drove me to committing the offence, because l am a single parent,” she told the court.
The court ordered that the accused be remanded at Nakuru Central police station awaiting a pre-sentence form to be presented before the court to aid its decision.
The case will be mentioned on October 31.