Woman arrested for dumping baby in a latrine

By Henry Nsubuga

Police in Mukono District have arrested a 25-year-old woman for allegedly dumping her new born baby boy into a pit latrine.

Police identified the suspect as Janet Namudama, a resident of Nabbaale zone in Nama Sub County, Mukono District.

The Officer in Charge of crime in Mukono Police Division, Henry Mugumya, said that Namudama’s landlady, Efrance Kanyanya called Police on Monday morning after her children told her that there was a baby crying in the pit latrine.

“I called fire brigade which came to the baby’s rescue. After retrieving him from the latrine, residents searched for their colleague who could have given birth the previous night. They later landed on Namudama who had locked herself in her house,” Mugumya said.

He added that when the female residents offered to check her, they found out that she had just given birth. Mugumya said that it was at this moment that Namudama confessed that the baby belonged to her.

Namudama said that her husband, one Geoffrey Owor told her that he was not interested in babies after she got pregnant.

“Owor later dumped me when I was about to give birth. I gave birth at around 3:00am and decided to dump the baby in the pit latrine at around 5:00am. Right now I have no money and I couldn’t get means of looking after the baby,” she said.

Mugumya said that Namudama is to be charged with attempted murder. Mugumya took Namudama together with the baby to Mukono Health Center IV for treatment.

Florence Babirye, a midwife at the health center said that the baby was bad state.

“We are going to put him on oxygen because he has problems with breathing,” Babirye said.