Flowers, candles pile up in Polish park where mother buried child, claimed had been kidnapped The USA Times

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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Flowers, candles pile up in Polish park where mother buried child, claimed had been kidnapped

(AP Photo/Tomasz Dudzinski) POLAND OUT)

WARSAW, Poland - Flowers, teddy bears and candles piled up Monday in a southern Polish park where a mother buried her baby and then sparked a nationwide search by falsely claiming she had been kidnapped.

Initial autopsy findings showed that 6-month-old Madzia died of blunt injuries to the back of her head, according to Marta Zawada-Dybek, spokeswoman for the case prosecutor.

The child's 22-year-old mother Katarzyna Wasniewska was arrested Saturday after she said that the baby had died when it slipped from her hands and hit its head on the floor.

Zawada-Dybek said the initial autopsy findings did not conflict with injuries that could have been sustained in the mother's version of the cause of death, but more tests and expert opinions were needed.

Wasniewska could face five years in prison on charges of unintentionally causing Madzia's death, if convicted.

On Jan. 24, Wasniewska claimed she was attacked in the street in the family's hometown of Sosnowiec and the baby taken from her. A nationwide appeal was made for clues and witnesses, and the child's family posted leaflets with Madzia's picture around the neighbourhood. The case was widely reported in Polish media.

Police found the baby's body on Saturday hidden under stones and leaves in the park in Sosnowiec.

The place has since been covered with hundreds of flowers, toys and candles.