The lifeless body of a baby girl was found inside a Caritas bin for the collection of used clothing in Milan on Friday 28 April around 8pm. She was wrapped in a red sweatshirt and a yellow towel, and she still had a part of the placenta attached, suggesting that she had just been delivered a short time ago. The discovery took place in the Città Studi district on the corner of via Sandro Botticelli and via Cesare Saldini.
The Mobile Squad is investigating the case and is carrying out checks on the cameras in the area and in hospitals to understand if any women have presented themselves to be treated in these hours.
The baby was most likely born recently, at home
The baby was most likely born at home. She was found in a fetal position in a Caritas dumpster, in a sort of ravine that made her visible to passers-by. From the first forensic findings there are no signs of violence on the body of the baby who was “lay down”as if to want it to be found soon.
The first to notice the girl’s body was a 70-year-old, then a 74-year-old arrived and the first one asked him, “Do you have a cell phone? Do you think it is a doll or a child?”. The second then called for help and raised the alarm. Prosecutor Paolo Storari will open a file against unknown persons with the hypothesis of the crime of infanticide.
An autopsy will be arranged on the baby to understand if she was born alive or dead (but the first hypothesis is more likely). The images of the cameras of the area and of the buses will be fundamental.
The words of Gualzetti of Caritas: “We are dismayed”
“We learned with dismay from the media the sad news – said Luciano Gualzetti, director of Caritas Ambrosiana – . We express our deepest sorrow for what happened and our prayers for the little life lost, as well as for those affected. Our counseling centers and our services accompany and support every day, often collaborating with life support centres, parents and mothers dealing with unwanted or difficult maternity situations. Painful events, like the one that took place yesterday, confirm our commitment to protect and promote unborn life and to support families in difficulty, and spur us to intensify this attention”.
Bertolè, councilor for welfare of the Municipality: “We work to support families in difficulty”
“The news of the little baby found lifeless leaves us astonished and dismayed, above all because it concerns a girl who had presumably appeared in the world for only a few moments – commented the councilor for welfare of the Municipality of Milan Lamberto Bertolè – We are awaiting the medical insights lawyers to understand what really happened. Every day the social services of the Municipality work to support families in difficulty and parents who choose to face the path of parenthood. We can only commit ourselves so that our work is ever more effective and mothers and fathers choose to ask us for help in times of difficulty”.