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Mother of newborn found dead in motel sink referred to prosecutors

Published: 23 Dec. 2025, 20:42

The Korean police logo[YONHAP]

The mother of a newborn found dead in a motel sink in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi, has been handed over to prosecutors under detention.

The Gyeonggi Bukbu Provincial Police Agency’s unit for crimes involving women and juveniles said Tuesday that a young woman was arrested and indicted on charges of murder.

The suspect is accused of killing a newborn daughter she gave birth to in a motel room in Uijeongbu on the afternoon of Dec. 13.

The incident came to light when a motel operator checked the room after the checkout time had passed and the guest failed to leave, then reported the matter to the police.

Police and firefighters dispatched to the scene found the newborn in a sink filled with water. The infant, who was unresponsive, was taken to a hospital while first responders attempted resuscitation but was pronounced dead.

According to a preliminary verbal assessment from the National Forensic Service, the cause of death could not be determined through an initial visual examination alone, but the possibility of drowning was not ruled out.

During questioning, the suspect denied killing the baby, saying she gave birth alone in the motel room and was trying to wash the baby, police said.

The Uijeongbu District Court issued an arrest warrant for the suspect on Thursday, citing flight risk concerns.

Police said they applied the charge of murder rather than child abuse resulting in death after determining that the suspect had the "eventual intent" to kill, a legal concept in which the perpetrator is aware of a possibility that a crime may be committed but proceeds with indifference to the outcome.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG SI-NAE [[email protected]]