Portsmouth baby death: Police reveal yellow towel dumped near infant as fears for newborn's mum deepen

THIS yellow towel could be the critical clue in unravelling the tragic mystery surrounding a newborn baby girl found dead in a city street, police have today revealed.
Tom Cotterill
By Tom Cotterill
Published 31st Jan 2020, 00:01 BST
Updated 31st Jan 2020, 09:33 BST
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The Primark towel was dumped in Victoria Street, Buckland, just feet from where the deceased infant was found at the junction of Old Commercial Road on Saturday.

Police believe it had been used to wrap up the baby before being discarded in a black t-shirt on a path behind block 5-19 Victoria Street.

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Now, almost a week on from the tragedy, desperate detectives are appealing to the public in a hope of tracking down the baby’s mother.

Pictured is: (right) Inspector Louise Tester of Hampshire Constabulary with Liz Rix, chief nurse at Portsmouth NHS Hospital Trust, pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5158)Pictured is: (right) Inspector Louise Tester of Hampshire Constabulary with Liz Rix, chief nurse at Portsmouth NHS Hospital Trust, pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5158)
Pictured is: (right) Inspector Louise Tester of Hampshire Constabulary with Liz Rix, chief nurse at Portsmouth NHS Hospital Trust, pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5158)

It comes as Portsmouth’s top nurse today joined the appeal and warned the mother’s life could be in jeopardy if she doesn’t seek urgent medical attention.

Inspector Louise Tester said her team was ‘desperately trying’ to find the missing mother to give her ‘the help she needs’

‘As we are sure many of you will understand, this is a very complex and delicate investigation, with many different lines of enquiry to follow,’ she added.

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‘We know that many of you have been deeply saddened by this and there is a lot of speculation.

Police pictured on Saturday searching Old Commercial Road for clues. Picture: Keith Woodland (25012020-84)Police pictured on Saturday searching Old Commercial Road for clues. Picture: Keith Woodland (25012020-84)
Police pictured on Saturday searching Old Commercial Road for clues. Picture: Keith Woodland (25012020-84)

‘Please be reassured that we have a dedicated team working incredibly hard to find out what has happened.’

The beach-style towel, which is no longer sold by Primark, has two orange stripes along one end and one across the other.

The one pictured is the same type as the one found at the scene.

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Inspector Tester added: ‘We are hoping that by releasing this image of the towel it will help to jog someone’s memory.

Pictured is: Inspector Louise Tester pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5171)Pictured is: Inspector Louise Tester pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5171)
Pictured is: Inspector Louise Tester pictured with a yellow towel similar to the one officers recovered from close to the scene, believed to have been used to wrap up the infant. Picture: Sarah Standing (300120-5171)

‘It is quite a bright colour, so please think back to last week – did you see anyone carrying something that matches this? It had been wrapped in a black t-shirt, so you may have someone carrying something dark in their arms?

‘You may have thought that what you saw was insignificant but please let us be the judge of that.

‘Or do you know anyone that had this towel but doesn’t have it anymore?’

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Results from a post-mortem examinations proved inconclusive, with experts unable to say what caused the baby’s death.

As previously reported, the infant was born at about 39 weeks and was white. Police believe she was not born in a hospital.

A spokeswoman for Hampshire police said officers the afterbirth was not found with the girl, prompting fears for the mother’s health.

Now, Liz Rix, chief nurse at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, has appealed for the mother to seek urgent medical help.

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‘We are worried about you and we want you to get the medical help you need,’ she said. ‘If you have given birth without medical attention you may be in pain, you may be suffering from bleeding or an infection which could be potentially life-threatening if left untreated.’

Anyone with information can call 101, quoting Operation Cravat or the reference number 44200030626. Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or send information to https://mipp.police.uk/operation/44HC20E02-PO1.