Common-law husband: I did not know

THE common-law husband of the woman detained in connection with the decomposing body of a newborn girl found in a shallow grave, says he is being “persecuted by John Public” for something he knew nothing of.

The father of one told Newsday he is not the father of the dead newborn and knew nothing of the pregnancy. The 32-year-old woman has a medical condition which causes her stomach to grow.

“I did not notice. She probably was too traumatised to tell me. I know about all this on Friday. I could have handled this on a different level, but I have to hold the fort for my daughter.”

The woman, who lives at Gonzales Village, Point Fortin, is still in police custody and is expected to undergo psychiatric evaluations. On Friday at about 8 am, a resident saw a mound of dirt behind the woman's home and found the body wrapped in cloth. The woman later told police that she was in the eighth month of her pregnancy in October when she delivered a stillborn. She said she was alone and buried the body.

The man said: “Right now, I am clearing my head. I leave her to handle her scene. The old people have a saying, where you catch your cold go blow your nose (sic).”