1-year-old baby girl found dead with throat slit in Thiruvananthapuram; mother taken into custody

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a shocking incident, a one-year-old infant girl was found murdered with her throat slit in a house in Thiruvananthapuram district on Thursday evening. The baby’s mother was taken into custody with police suspecting that domestic dispute led to the crime.

Christie, 29, is presumed to have killed Anna at their house in Moolaman ward of Vilavoorkkal grama panchayat.

Neighbours and local-body members said there were minor issues within the family. Following her arrest, Christie was taken to Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital after she claimed to have overdosed to commit suicide.

According to neighbours, Anna was in the house with Christie while her father Abhijith and his mother Girlie were out for work. Abhijith’s grandmothers Neshamma and Jaseentha, who were also on the premises, noticed that Anna had overslept. They repeatedly asked Christie to open the door. Christie emerged and informed them that she had killed the child.

Though Anna was rushed to the nearby primary health centre and later to the Medical College Hospital, she died of her injuries.

According to a neighbour, the accused showed the police the knife she used for the murder, which was kept under the bed. He said that except for minor issues, he was unaware of any serious disputes in the family.

He added that Christie remained in the bedroom when the child was being shifted.

Moolaman ward member Elsa J said Abhijith’s grandmothers talked about verbal fights that Christie had with them. “Before she was taken by police, Christie told me that if she hadn’t killed Anna, Abhijith’s grandmothers would have poisoned her. I don’t know how much of this is true, but both Neshamma and Jaseentha treated the child affectionately,” Elsa said.