Man who abandoned his newborn to stand trial

A man is to go on trial for abandoning his newborn daughter in a hospital, Hongkou District prosecutors said. 

The suspect, surnamed Wang, and the baby's mother, who was not named, met in an Internet cafe, they said. Both were drug users.

She gave birth on March 4, 2016, in Hongkou's Jiangwan Hospital to a daughter identified as Xiaohui. When the new mother began to feel unwell and collapsed five days later, she was transferred to Shanghai General Hospital. Wang went with her, leaving the  baby behind, according to Jiangwan Hospital records.
After his girlfriend was diagnosed with a severe cerebral hemorrhage, Wang disappeared, prosecutors said.

Wang told police he was an online game player for clients, and had gone to collect money to pay for her medical bills. However, he was caught using drugs at the Internet cafe on March 17, 2016.

He was given a 14-day administrative detention. 

After his release he vanished again, while his girlfriend died in hospital on April 28, 2016.

Meanwhile, Xiaohui had been sent to the Shanghai Children's Temporary Care Center. Police had contacted Xiaohui's grandparents, but they were not able to look after the baby, prosecutors said.

Wang’s parents had divorced when he was young. His mother was looking after a relative’s child while his father maintained no contact with them.

Wang’s girlfriend had two children before Xiaohui, including one born out of wedlock. 

Wang was apprehended on December 2017 at Shanghai South Railway Station. If found guilty of abandoning his baby, he faces up to five years of jail.