Police find woman’s body in hunt for mum and newborn who vanished from hospital

Police searching for a mother and her four-day-old baby who went missing from a Bristol hospital have found a woman’s body in the Avon Gorge.

Charlotte Bevan, 30, disappeared from St Michael’s Hospital with her daughter, named Zaani Tiana, between 8.30pm and 9pm on Tuesday.

Police said formal identification will take place on today.

A spokesman said: “The family of Charlotte Bevan... have been told of this development.”

Earlier,the baby’s father issued a desperate plea for help finding his girlfriend and their newborn baby girl who was wrapped only in a blanket.

Police said they were “concerned” for the welfare of the mother and baby, who were both believed to be severely under-dressed for the cold weather.

Officers were “urgently” searching for the pair, and were investigating a number of unconfirmed sightings.

Ms Bevan’s worried boyfriend Pascal Malbrouck said he was “heartbroken” at their disappearance.

He posted on Facebook: “My daughter has gone missing with her mum Charlotte Bevan, please if anyone has got any info or has seen her please contact me here.”

He added a sad face emoticon with the words “feeling heartbroken”.

Friends have said Ms Bevan was part of a “happy couple” and her disappearance was totally “out of character”.

A University Hospitals Bristol spokeswoman said staff had no reason to believe Ms Bevan was going to leave the premises. The hospital had denied reports its CCTV cameras are not working, and said the maternity ward was a restricted area.