Cabbie in baby-throwing case found

Police traced yesterday a taxi driver who testified that two women who hired his services threw a newborn baby girl out of his vehicle as they went through Mandaluyong City last Thursday.

The taxi driver, Ivan Hernandez, is helping police trace the two passengers, one of whom could be the mother of the child.

Mandaluyong Mayor Benjamin Abalos Jr. “is glad that we made a major breakthrough in our investigaton of the case. He urged us to identify the mother and charged her in court if necessary,” city police chief Senior Superintendent Carlos de Sagun said.

Witnesses earlier said a woman threw out a box containing the baby girl from a taxi with license plate TVH-255. However, the license was not listed with the Land Transportation Office.

Chief Inspector Bong Sta. Teresa, head of the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the local police, checked other license number combinations and was able to trace Hernandez through license plate TVH-655.

Hernandez surrendered when Sta. Teresa and his men arrived at the terminal of the Kuwit-Kuwit taxi firm.

He said two women boarded his taxi in front a house in Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City early morning of Dec. 17.

One woman who appeared to be in her 30’s and seemed pale and weak, Hernandez said. Her companion, who was in her 20’s, may have been her household help, he said.

According to Hernandez, the duo asked to be taken to Barangay Plainview in Mandaluyong City.

Because he was not familiar with the area, Hernandez said his passengers guided him to a house with a green gate, where the baby was “left behind.”

The taxi driver said his passengers disembarked in front of a drugstore along Shaw Boulevard.

According to Sta. Teresa, the baby girl’s umbilical cord was not yet detached and the placenta was found inside the box. She was covered by a cloth and a plastic bag, apparently to keep her warm.

The baby was taken to the Mandaluyong City Medical Center, where, according to senior house officer Dr. Elizabeth Carpeso, she is staying in a private room and cared for by doctors, nurses and concerned residents.

“The baby is being regularly fed with breast milk. There are about 15 to 20 lactating mothers who out of concern are giving their breast milk to her,” Carpeso said.

Carpeso said the baby had undergone laboratory examinations and so far had tested negative for any infection. The baby is scheduled to undergo other tests.

“After 24 to 48 hours, she can be discharged from the hospital,” she said.

She said many couples have called the hospital and expressed their willingness to adopt the child after learning about what happened to her.