A Nigerian nurse based in the United Kingdom, UK, Ruth Auta, was sentenced to three years in prison yesterday for child cruelty.
It was reported that the 28-year-old single mother, Ruth Auta, abandoned her child at her apartment (without anyone watching over the child) to go and work a shift for 8 hours only to get back and meet the baby dead in the cot.
The dead baby was only 10 weeks old.
An investigation by the UK Police showed the child possibly died from heat from the excessive clothing and bedding he was wrapped in.
She was reported to have lied to the UK Police she took the baby to a nanny and got him back, that she fed him, and then fell asleep with him on her bed. She claimed she found him dead when she woke up.
However, CCTV footage and incriminating text messages showed she was lying.
The house CCTV showed her leaving and returning after 8 hours to her apartment without the baby. Text messages also revealed she had told the nanny to lie and help her cover up the baby’s death. The nanny later confirmed the baby was not brought to her and she never saw the baby for many days.
Ruth eventually pleaded guilty at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on May 24, 2024. The judge delayed the announcement of her punishment and prison terms by a month.
However on June 6, she was arrested at Gatwick Airport in UK with a one-way ticket heading for Nigeria. Apparently she was trying to escape out of the UK before being sent to prison.
Ruth worked as a nurse at Royal Bolton Hospital. With this developments, she would most likely lose her nursing license and may be unable to ever work again as a nurse after she completes her jail term.
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