Inquest opened into death of baby found at waste site

Bradford coroner Peter Straker signed the papers that officially released the newborn baby’s body so she can be laid to rest at a specially created memorial garden at Associated Waste Management’s depot in Valley Road, Shipley, where the tragic find was made.

Staff and people living nearby have raised enough funds to give her a dignified burial and mark her last resting place with a commemorative plaque. They named her Catherine after Prince William’s bride - the inquest heard yesterday.

The extensive search for her mother still continues, with the baby’s DNA kept on record.

Detective Superintendent Sukhbir Singh told the inquest waste comes to the site from all over West Yorkshire, with about 60 per cent from Bradford, but it was impossible to tell where the baby had come from.

Her remains were discovered on the final conveyor belt of the lengthy sorting and filtering process, which finishes with just rubble that can be recycled.

Following the find on May 19 last year, the plant was closed down while officers searched through piles of rubbish for clues to the baby's identity.

In the past 12 months, officers have sent 37,000 letters appealing for information to homes in Bradford, Leeds, and other areas of West Yorkshire which supplied waste to the depot.

It is believed because of the length of the umbilical cord and how it was cut that the baby was not delivered in hospital.

It was not possible for medical experts at Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where the post mortem was carried out, to tell whether or not she had been a still-birth.

The inquest was adjourned until such time as the police investigation is concluded.

Anyone with information should contact Detective Sergeant Ian Lawrie, at HMET, on (01924) 334676. The team can also be contacted directly via e-mail at oppegar@westyorkshire.pnn.police.uk Information can also be given to CrimeStoppers on 0800 555 111.