Singaporean couple wanted by Taiwanese authorities for suspected killing of newborn

Nearly two years after the body of a baby was found in a food recycling bin in Taipei, a Singaporean couple is now wanted by Taiwanese authorities.

The pair, who are in their 20s, is suspected of abandoning the infant hours after her birth in 2019.

According to reports on Tuesday (Feb 16), the Taipei district prosecutor's office has classified the case as homicide and infanticide and has issued an arrest warrant for the suspects.

If they step foot in Taiwan, the couple will be arrested immediately, a spokesperson from the prosecutor's office told Lianhe Wanbao on Wednesday.

Forensic tests found that the child was born alive, and the evidence that police had gathered — the baby's DNA matching blood samples taken from the couple's hotel bathroom — pointed to the pair's involvement in the case.

The woman allegedly delivered a baby girl on Feb 26, 2019 while on holiday with her boyfriend in Tapiei.

The newborn was later placed in a black plastic bag and discarded in a food recycling bin outside an eatery.

Hours later, a recycling company worker sorting through the food waste discovered the infant's body with her umbilical cord and placenta intact.

That very same afternoon, the couple checked out of the hotel and flew back to Singapore, Taiwanese media reported.

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Surveillance footage of the area captured a man resembling the male suspect disposing of the plastic bag outside an eatery in Ximending, but the man denied that his girlfriend was pregnant and had given birth in Taiwan.

Since the incident, the couple mostly lay low from the public eye, with the man announcing on Oct 24 last year that they had gotten engaged.

The police in Singapore said in March 2019 that they were in touch with the Taiwanese authorities and would offer assistance if they receive a request from them.

In Taiwan, those found guilty of homicide will be sentenced to death, or life imprisonment, or a jail term of up to 10 years. A mother who kills her newborn may be jailed between six months and five years.

lamminlee@asiaone.com