Mother left baby on plane after birth

A WOMAN who gave birth aboard an international flight without anyone noticing was charged by New Zealand police yesterday with abandoning her daughter after the newborn was found in a toilet garbage bin.

The unnamed 29-year-old Samoan mother walked off a Pacific Blue flight from Samoa to Auckland last Thursday after apparently giving birth during the flight.

Soon afterward, cleaners found the newborn child lying amid bloodied paper towels in a toilet bin.

Police Detective Inspector Mark Gutry said the woman was charged with child abandonment — which carries a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment — and child assault.

She could also face a fine of up to NZ$100,000 (€42,000) and another seven years in prison for allegedly failing to reveal information about her pregnancy, a violation of the country’s Immigration Act.

The mother was reported to be returning to New Zealand to work as a kiwi fruit picker when her daughter was born.

She underwent surgery at an Auckland hospital last Thursday after the birth and was later reunited with her baby. State welfare authorities were working to determine what long-term arrangements would be best for the baby, according to a state welfare official.