Mother Sentenced for Hiding Baby Daughter in Drawer for First 3 Years of Her Life: ‘Extreme Neglect’

Mar. 15, 2025

“The charges relate to offences which occurred between 18 March 2020 and 18 February 2023,” police said.

The child was discovered hidden in a bedroom at an address in Cheshire in February 2023 and immediately taken into care, police added.

A photo of Chester Crown Court.Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty

Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty

“As a result of the woman’s actions, the child was severely underdeveloped, malnourished and also had a number of medical conditions which had never been treated,” police added.

“He followed the noise and discovered a child of almost three years old with a cleft palate, matted hair and clearly malnourished,” the CPS release stated.

Cheshire Police

“She also had floppy limbs, swollen feet in an abnormal position and redness to the outer limbs. At the age of 35 months her development was markedly delayed and was the equivalent to that of a 10-month-old,” the CPS added.

CPS

“I looked at her [mom] and asked, ‘Is this where you keep her?’ The mother replied matter of factly, ‘yes in the drawer,' " they added. “I was shocked the mother did not show any emotion and appeared blasé about the situation. I asked had anyone else ever seen (the child)? [Mom] stated no.”

Detective Constable, Rachel Di Nicola, said, “What this child has experienced in its short lifetime is simply unimaginable, and how anyone can allow a child to suffer in that way is beyond belief,” per the police release.

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Senior Crown Prosecutor Rachel Worthington, of CPS Mersey-Cheshire, stated: “This child has been subjected to extreme neglect of her health, development, and basic care needs since before she was born."

“This child has never had a birthday present, a Christmas present or anything to recognize these days. She’s had no interaction with any of her siblings," Worthington said, per the CPS release. “She hadn’t known daylight or fresh air and didn’t respond to her own name when she was first found."

CPS said the child has been continuing to “make progress,” and has “been operated on twice to rectify the cleft palate,” but “still requires further surgery.”

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

source: people.com