Three newborn babies who were found dumped in parks in London over seven years belong to the same parents
4 June 2024, 07:54 | Updated: 4 June 2024, 12:03
A newborn baby abandoned in a shopping bag in east London was the third to be dumped by the same parents, a court has heard.
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The child, known as Baby Elsa, has a brother and a sister who were also discovered alone in 2017 and 2019 respectively.
The revelation comes after a judge at East London Family Court ruled on Monday that reporting restrictions could be changed to allow the publication of the link between the three children.
DNA testing showed Baby Elsa has two siblings, known as Baby Harry and Baby Roman from the same parents.
The parents are yet to be identified, with the Met Police reiterating their call for anyone with information to come forward.
Judge Carol Atkinson said on Monday: "There is a clear public interest in reporting this story.
"The abandonment of a baby in this country is a very, very unusual event and there are years where there are no children abandoned, and because of that it is the story of the abandoning of a child that is of public interest."
She continued: "It is for the same reason, in our current society, of enormous interest and importance that people know that there is a mother and father out there who felt the need to relinquish their children in this way, three times, and that is of considerable interest, it seems to me.
"If I restrict these rights and the reporting of that story, I think that does impact on public consciousness of these sorts of matters. It restricts the openness of justice."
Baby Elsa was believed to be less than an hour old when she was found abandoned in a shopping bag at the junction of Greenway and High Street South in East Ham on January 18.
Her sister, Baby Roman, was found in similar circumstances in a play area off Roman Road, Newham, in early February 2019.
Two years prior to that, in September 2017, Baby Harry was found wrapped in a white blanket in Balaam Street, Plaistow.
Harry and Roman - not their real names - have since been adopted.
But barrister Kate Claxton, representing Newham London Borough Council, previously told the court that the ongoing investigation means that Elsa's birth cannot be registered, meaning no final decision regarding her care can be made.
Another hearing in her case is expected to be held at a later date.
Anyone with information in relation to the parents' identities is urged to get in contact with police using the reference CAD 6876/18 Jan.
