Pregnant woman who slit open own belly faces raps

Manila, Philippines -  The Manila Police District (MPD) is set to press charges against a pregnant woman who slit open her own belly and pulled out her unborn child in Sta. Mesa, Manila Thursday.

Janice Calipe, 28, may be charged with abortion, MPD homicide section chief Senior Inspector Joey de Ocampo told The STAR. He said Ocampo is a midwifery graduate but is currently jobless.

Police said Calipe experienced abdominal pain Thursday afternoon and probably thought she was about to give birth. She reportedly injected herself with nine cubic centimeters (cc) of lidocaine, an anesthetic, made an incision approximately 10 to 15 centimeters long, and pulled out her baby.

She later sewed up her abdomen with an ordinary needle and thread, but was in terrible pain. Her aunt brought her to the Sampaloc Hospital but she was later transferred to the Sta. Ana Hospital.

Relatives refused to have the MPD investigate the case, De Ocampo said, adding that the only time that the relatives presented the baby’s body was when investigators asked about the baby’s condition. De Ocampo also said he wants Calipe to undergo a psychiatric test.