Police await postmortem report after newborn death case

2026-03-16 - 11:15

Police are awaiting a postmortem report after the body of a newborn infant was discovered inside a plastic bag at the Hongkong Market waste disposal area on the morning of 9th March 2026. The shocking discovery was made around 10 am by waste collectors who were carrying out their routine segregation of garbage before transporting it to the Memelakha landfill, waste dumping yard. One of the workers noticed a plastic bag, and upon inspecting it, found the body of a newborn wrapped in a bedsheet. The collectors immediately alerted the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP). A friend of the primary eyewitness who was present at the site told this paper that a young woman and a boy had arrived in a red taxi and disposed of a bag of waste while workers were still sorting the garbage. A senior waste collector said that workers routinely segregate waste at the site every day before it is transported to the Memelakha landfill. During the process, each bag of waste is checked and separated accordingly. He explained that the workers had almost completed segregating the earlier batch of waste when the girl and boy arrived and disposed of the plastic bag. Since the workers were still present and continuing with their segregation duties, the bag was left at the front side of dry waste disposal area before the sorted waste is usually transferred to Thromde vehicles. “While we were continuing our work, one of my colleagues opened the plastic bag and found the infant’s body inside,” the waste collector said. He also noted that the waste disposal area does not have any CCTV cameras installed, which initially made it difficult to identify the individuals who had disposed of the waste. Meanwhile, the police sources said that after receiving information about the discovery and the witness account regarding the girl and boy who had arrived at the site, police launched an investigation and were able to trace the individuals. Police later identified the mother as a young woman aged 18 while the boy who accompanied her was identified as her brother. The infant was later confirmed to be a newborn girl. According to the police, both the mother and her brother confessed that the infant was her newborn baby. However, officials said they have not yet been able to formally interview the mother as she is currently in a traumatized state and undergoing necessary medical treatment. Experts point out that young women in such situation may face severe social pressure, fear and trauma, which can influence their actions. Authorities have urged the public to refrain from making negative remarks toward the young woman, noting that she is currently in a vulnerable condition. Investigations are ongoing as police await the postmortem report to determine further details regarding the infant’s death. Bhutan does not offer abortion facilities.