Blacktown abandoned baby: Police believe they found mother

Police believe they have found the mother of a newborn baby left in a backyard in Blacktown a month ago, but it will take some time for DNA tests to confirm it.

Police believe they have found the mother of a newborn baby left in a backyard in Blacktown a month ago.

A woman came forward this week who police believe is likely the parent, but DNA tests will take some time to confirm.

A family living in a home on Girra Rd in Blacktown found the baby girl on one of their outdoor chairs on Friday, April 21.

The family had gone indoors after finishing lunch when they heard crying in the backyard.

Police said she was between one- and three-hours old.

She was not clothed and still had an umbilical cord attached to her.

The backyard where the baby was found. Picture: Julian Andrews

Recently, the detective tasked with unearthing the identity believed the answer would come from within the community where she was found.

As they appealed for information, detectives urged the mum to come forward and stressed she was not in trouble.

“Don’t be scared to come forward, because all we want to do is help you,” NSW Police Acting Inspector David McInerney said at a press conference at the time.

“Please contact [police] or attend hospital or ring an ambulance.”

Inspector McInerney said childbirth can be very “traumatic” and any woman that has given birth and abandoned their child within hours must need help.

Police investigating the missing baby at Blacktown. Picture: Julian Andrews

“We are concerned about her health, safety and wellbeing and just want to help,” Inspector McInerney said.

A Department of Communities and Justice spokeswoman confirmed the baby girl was “happy and healthy” and with a foster carer.

“We are grateful to police, child protection services and NSW healthcare workers involved in this case - without them, the outcome could have been tragic,” she said.

Lara, the sister of Blacktown mum Anne Carlos, was hanging up washing on their clothesline when she heard the faint cries of the hours-old infant on that Friday afternoon.

The shock discovery prompted Ms Carlos to immediately call for help, with the mother telling The Daily Telegraph in an exclusive interview how she cut the baby’s umbilical cord.

“I couldn’t find anything in the kitchen, so I grabbed a shoelace and used that … then they [the paramedics] talked me through how to do it,” she told the paper.

Ms Carlos, alongside her sister and mother, coddled the crying baby who they wrapped in a warm towel before loosely dressing her in clothes they had lying around the house.

The house where the baby was abandoned. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Jeremy Piper

“We knew she had been born very recently, like only hours earlier, because she still had the white stuff [vernix] on her head,” she said.

The family believe the baby was quickly cleaned up before she was put in their backyard as there “wasn’t a lot of blood”.

Ms Carlos, who has her own young daughter, 11-month-old Skye, doesn’t know why the baby girl was left in their Girra Rd backyard, with the family only moving into the house a week earlier.

She recalled hearing the side gate close “loudly” but at first didn’t think much of it as Ms Carlos assumed it was her brother-in-law.

“Now we realise that must have been the mum or whoever left the baby here, and they closed it loudly so we would go out and find her,” she said.

“You don’t bang a gate closed if you don’t want to be heard.”

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