Mother of baby found outside Durban petrol station arrested
Updated | By Nushera Soodyal
The man who found a newborn baby girl in a bush near a Durban petrol station, says he's relieved that the child's mother has come forward.
A petrol attendant who found an abandoned baby-girl near the Engen Ushaka Convenience Centre says he is relieved that the child's mother has been found.
Police arrested the 21-year-old woman after she walked into the station claiming to be the mother and asking for the baby back last night.
The three-day-old was spotted by attendant, Kaplan Mtolo while he was returning from lunch on Tuesday.
Mtolo has told Newswatch that his heart broke when he found the baby.
"To throw away a baby is wrong. She was not supposed to throw the baby away. She was supposed to go to the social workers and say she can't take care of the child. They could have advised her on what needs to be done - it's wrong to throw away a gift from God," Mtolo said.
NOW READ: Search for mother of baby found outside Durban petrol station
Meanwhile, the filling station's owner says the woman came in claiming she had seen a post about the baby on social media.
Owner Shaza Ballim says the woman arrived at the filling station yesterday saying she wanted her baby.
"She came in crying, she was very upset, very distraught. She said to us that she had seen the post and she had given the baby to somebody to care for until she finished her exams. She was then going to take the baby and go home. She said she saw the post and she wanted her baby back and she was just very inconsolable," Ballim said.
ALSO READ: Father of Durban baby wants tough penalty for murder suspect
Ballim says after listening to her, they phoned the police.
"We waited for her to calm down and tried to tell her that the baby is put in protective care services. We got a hold of her mother and tried to get her family here. Her mother came down and we called the investigating officers to come in and speak to them."
The mother will appear in court on Monday.
Show's Stories
-
Chinese sightseeing destination looking to hire a Monkey King
You can be a Monkey King for an easy R15k a month.
Carol Ofori 14 hours ago -
Woman shows us what she does when dating apps don't work
We guess this method of finding the one is worth the risk...
Vic Naidoo 14 hours ago