Police have removed a six-week-old baby from her mother after she sent a disturbing message meant for the father of the child and now the mother is begging for the child’s return, saying she was misunderstood.
The matter is now being investigated by the Children’s Authority.
The Gasparillo mother-of-three insists that hurting herself or her baby was never her intention.
She and the child’s father had a verbal and physical altercation last Tuesday amid ongoing issues in their relationship. The following day she dropped off his clothes and belongings at his mother’s home in Malabar. The woman, who owns a medical supplies business, said they were sending messages to each other, but he blocked her.
On Friday morning she sent a message to his mother’s phone stating, “Let (the baby’s father) know he caused this, and I hope it haunts him every day that he lives. And when they find us the world will know of the abuse and they will know why I did what I did. This was my last straw. This postpartum got the best of me. Goodbye.”
She admitted that the words could have been misconstrued as a threat. But, she insisted, “I did not mean I wanted to hurt myself or my child. I meant I just want to leave, I just want to run away with him and just vanish for my safety and sanity because he has been horrible to me. I regret that I did not word it properly.”
Later that day, she sent a photo of her holding the baby by one leg upside down. The mother said it was not unusual for them to flip the baby in this position as it assists with the sensory development of the brain.
“When I bathe him, I do exercises with him. I have a video I follow. I did not have a reason for sending the picture.”
She also sent a message for the father to collect his son because he usually took care of him on a weekend while she works. However, around 10.30 pm, the child’s father arrived at her doorsteps with the police. She complained that the police had no warrant.
“From the door, the police began recording. They claim I made an utterance that I will kill myself and the baby. My attorney asked for a copy of the recording, but they did not give it to her.”
She said the incident took place in the presence of her three-year-old daughter and the child is still traumatised. Her nine-year-old daughter does not live with her.
“If I am a threat to myself and my children why did they not take my other child. My baby is breastfeeding. I just want my baby back, he is just six-weeks-old. He deserves to be breastfed, he deserves his mother, he deserves to be taken care of, and only I can do that.”
She complained that the police did not interview her or investigate the matter before they took her baby.
“They just acted irresponsibly. They had no jurisdiction to remove my baby,” said the mother who has since filed a complaint with the Police Complaint Authority. She said the Children’s Authority interviewed her on Saturday and yesterday she made an application for custody at the San Fernando Magistrates Court and the matter set for today.
“I pray to God that I get him back,” she said. Attempts to contact the child’s father and grandmother on their cellphones were unsuccessful.