Mother Overdoses Child With Cough Syrup And Cooks Up Kidnapping Story

A 30-year-old woman in India has been accused of killing her ill infant son after she allegedly overdosed him with cough syrup.

The 5-month-old boy had been sick and was coughing frequently. The mother, Shantabai Chavan of Kalwa, Maharashtra gave the child a fatal dose of cough syrup to stop the cough Thursday. When the baby died, the scared mother came up with a kidnapping story to shift blame.

"Based on our initial investigation, we have found out that Chavan gave an excessive dosage of cough syrup to her infant son Thursday as he was unwell and coughing frequently. We believe this led to his death," the deputy police commissioner, Avinash Ambure said to Times of India.

Chavan dumped the child’s body in a water drum in the neighborhood and rushed to the local police station. There she filed a complaint alleging that her infant had been kidnapped.

Officers with the Kalwa police station launched a search operation for the missing child. They canvassed the area and reviewed several CCTV footage from around the slum but did not find anything suspicious. Officers then questioned the child’s family and neighbors and found the child was sick and was left under the mother’s supervision.

Later, police searched the area around the family’s home and found the infant in a water-filled drum Saturday. The child was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead.

"She cooked up a story about the child being kidnapped Friday afternoon and then put him inside the water-filled drum Saturday morning. She has confessed to the crime," senior police officer, Venkat Andale said, according to NDTV.

Chavan has been taken into custody on charges of murder and destroying evidence.

"The woman told us she was scared of being reprimanded by her family after the baby fell lifeless and so she cooked up the story," said a police official to Times of India. Police still suspect there is more to the story and are actively investigating the case to determine the actual motive.

In October, three children in India died after consuming cough syrup prescribed by a doctor. The children allegedly died from dextromethorphan poisoning, a common substance found in cough suppressant medication.