Mother held incommunicado for allegedly abusing infant son to death

Kaohsiung, Nov. 7 (CNA) A local court on Thursday ordered that a mother in Kaohsiung be detained and held incommunicado on suspicion of abusing her 17-month-old son resulting in his death.

The Ciaotou District Court issued the order, citing concerns that the 23 year-old woman, surnamed Wu (吳), could tamper with evidence, collude with others and posed a flight risk.

The case surfaced when Wu took her son to the hospital on Wednesday, claiming that he fell out of bed and hit his head, according to the Kaohsiung police.

The infant died in hospital early Thursday after efforts to resuscitate him failed, and authorities were alerted about a suspected case of child abuse.

Police and prosecutors seized relevant evidence and summoned Wu for questioning. Following the interrogation, prosecutors asked the court to detain Wu, after determining there is substantial suspicion she intentionally inflicted the injuries that resulted in the child's death.

Huang Hui-chi (黃慧琦), director of Kaohsiung's Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Center, said Wu's family was flagged by social services last year as an "at-risk household," prompting the Social Affairs Bureau to provide the family with financial aid, diapers, baby formula, and parenting guidance.

The infant lived with Wu and her 30-year-old partner in rented accommodation. Kaohsiung police said they received a report in March that members of Wu's family had previously noticed bruises and other injuries on the child's body.

A follow-up investigation by the Kaohsiung Social Affairs Bureau concluded that the child had been injured as a result of negligence.