Newborn rescued from death's door

A newborn baby boy apparently escaped death after being rescued by a Pakistani man and a trader around 10.15 pm last night.

Recalling the incident, trader Mohd Safarin Mohd Shahir, 30, said a Pakistani man appearing panicky had stopped him at the roadside at Desa Dahlia 2 Muadzam Shah and told him about a baby in the bush next to the Muadzam Shah Forestry Department quarters.

"The Pakistani man told me that he had noticed a plastic bag at the site a few hours earlier and thought there was only a cat inside when it moved.

"Later feeling uneasy, he said he returned to the same place and discovered that a baby was inside the plastic bag and that's when he panicked," he said.

Mohd Safarin said the baby was very quiet but when he picked it up, it opened its eyes and started crying.

"I also panicked and quickly contacted the police and hospital," he told Bernama when met here today.

Meanwhile, Rompin District police chief DSP Azli Mohd Noor said when contacted that the newborn believed to be just a day old, was sent to Muadzam Shah Hospital.

"It is believed to be a full term baby and healthy except for some red marks possibly insect bites. The Social Welfare Department has also been informed for further action," he said.

Azli said the case was being investigated under Section 317 of the Penal Code which carries a jail sentence of up to seven years or a fine or both on conviction.

-- BERNAMA