Mother Fed Sick Baby Bleach, Wanted To Kill Him

A mother was arrested and charged for allegedly feeding her baby bleach in an attempt to kill the child, according to reports. Brooke Evelyn Lucas, 26, from Perth, Australia, poured bleach into her son’s feeding tube less than a week after he was discharged from hospital following his treatment.

The one-year-old baby, who was born 14 weeks premature, required constant care. A tube was also inserted into the baby for him to eat and breathe due to an abnormal condition called Pierre Robin sequence. According to police, the woman was charged with unlawful intent to kill or endanger human life.

Following the alleged incident, the baby was rushed to hospital and later discharged after treatment. Just days before trying to kill her son, the mother had posted on Facebook: "William has been discharged from PCH and will be spending his first Christmas at home. ‘I am in tears, after he was so sick Friday and Saturday, that he needed to be admitted back into hospital'."

The woman, who branded her son a "Christmas miracle" on social media, had set up a GoFundMe page about four months ago to help pay for the baby's medical costs. According to the fundraising page, William spent much of his time in hospital. The mother also wrote on the page she lived an hour away from the hospital and it was costing over $100 a week in fuel and parking fees.

However, it remains unclear why Lucas — who was allegedly "inconsolable" during her court hearing over the weekend — decided to kill her child. The mother was remanded in custody and is set to make a second court appearance Monday, British media outlet Metro reported.

According to the National Organization for Rare Diseases, Pierre Robin sequence "involves physical changes during development that lead to altered oral cavity anatomy. Since air and food, both pass through the mouth and down the throat, breathing and feeding problems are common."

In August, a 25-year-old mother in the western Indian state of Maharashtra killed her six-month-old son as she was fed up of his constant crying. The woman, identified as Kalpana Gaikar, drowned her son in a drain. She reportedly tried to make it look like an accident, however, police learnt about the incident and charged the woman with murder.

"She was fed up with her son, Rishabh, as he used to constantly cry. He used to also frequently fall sick. Besides, the woman herself was not keeping well since his birth," police said at the time, according to local news network NDTV.