A woman who reportedly hid her baby for over two years in the filthy boot of her car has been sentenced for serving 5 years of imprisonment as per the verdict of the French appeals court on October 15. She is said to have kept her baby girl in a maggot-infested car which has permanently traumatize the girl who is now seven. Doctors to the girl reported that she has the mental capacity of a two-three year old and that her autism is irreversible. For until two years since she was discovered, no one knew about her existence.

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The baby's horrific discovery after two years

The toddler was kept in a carrycot for two straight years in the trunk of her mother's station wagon and in an abandoned room in their family home in Correze, France, cited Prosecutors.

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It was only after two years since her birth that the baby's existence came to light. The woman named Rosa Maria Da Cruz reportedly sent her car for repair during which a mechanic found the baby in the boot. Speaking of the horrific sight, the mechanic said at the court that he heard a noise and opened the trunk to discover a naked baby who was filthy and dehydrated. Moreover, the baby was also surrounded by maggots and excrement.

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Lawyers claim the woman is mentally unstable

Rosa Maria Da Cruz is a mother to three other children who are perfectly sound and healthy cited pediatricians at the court. Her lawyers claimed that Da Cruz is mentally unstable and did not accept her fourth pregnancy. She is said to have done the same for her previous two pregnancies which explains her mental state, the lawyers said. Da Cruz was earlier sent to a five-year jail term, but three years were suspended following which she appealed to the prosecutors. Though the prosecutors did not wish to sentence her less than 10 years, the verdict was settled for 5 years. Her partner Domingos Sampaio Alves, an unemployed bricklayer, insisted during a previous court appearance that she is a good mother to their other children, then aged nine, 14 and 15 and that she did not know why she hid the fourth. Court has allowed the couple to parent the earlier children but lifted the parental rights from the baby who is now in foster care.

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