Father admits abandoning newborn in the hospital
A man admitted abandoning his newborn daughter in a hospital when he appeared at Hongkou District People’s Court yesterday.
Prosecutors told the court that Wang, 38, and his girlfriend were both drug users.
She gave birth to a girl on March 4, 2016, in Hongkou’s Jiangwan Hospital. She left the hospital with the baby but was readmitted on March 9 after feeling unwell.
Later that day, she was transferred to Shanghai General Hospital. Wang went with her but the baby remained at Jiangwan Hospital.
Wang’s girlfriend was diagnosed with a severe cerebral hemorrhage, and she died just weeks later on April 28. While she was in intensive care, Wang disappeared, prosecutors said.
The Hongkou hospital and the police called him several times, telling him to pick up his daughter, but he failed to appear and didn’t send any money for nursing fees, prosecutors said.
Wang said he had been trying to collect money to pay the medical bills. However, on March 17, he had been caught by police in Yangpu District for using drugs and given 14 days’ detention.
In January last year, the baby was sent to the Shanghai Children’s Temporary Care Center. As her biological father didn’t show up, she wasn’t registered as a Shanghai resident and couldn’t receive the vaccinations for newborns, prosecutors said.
Wang was caught last December at Shanghai South Railway Station.
Prosecutors suggested a prison term of up to 18 months. The court will announce its decision later.
A police investigation found that the girl’s grandparents on both sides were unable to take care of her. It would be better for the civil affairs authority to assume guardianship and send her to the children’s welfare center, prosecutors said, where she can be registered and receive vaccinations.