Johor police are still trying to find the next of kin of a newborn baby girl, who was found wrapped in batik sarong by the roadside near a school in Gelang Patah town, after the effort to locate her parents failed.
It is reported that police still have not confirmed if the child was abandoned, however, they have ordered an investigation under Section 317 of the Penal Code for abandoning a child below the age of 12 years old.
The baby was found by a 24-year-old motorcyclist,who was driving along the Jalan Tanjung Kupang sub-district at around about 2.30pm on 4 December. According to The Straits Times Iskandar Puteri OCPD Supt Noor Hashim Mohamad said the man discovered the baby along the 42nd kilometre stretch near SK Ladang Pendas.
"The man, who was riding on his motorcycle, spotted something moving on the grass by the roadside and stopped to inspect, only to find a baby," said the police officer, as reported by the news agency.
"The baby looked healthy and clothed in a diaper. She was brought to the police station," he added.
The infant was immediately taken to a nearby hospital where the doctors said that she was born less than 24 hours earlier and weighed 2.6 kg. She was later taken to Hospital Sultanah Aminah for further observation. The child would be handed over to the Social Welfare Department after ensuring her health is good.
However, police still have not been able to figure out the child's ethnicity."We are unsure of the girl's ethnicity and she does not have any birthmark on her body," said Mohamad, according to the news agency.
