THE MOTHER who abandoned her baby outside St Mary's Children's Home the night before Christmas Eve is in police custody and expected to be charged over the incident today, a police source stated yesterday.

The 32-year-old mother of three was detained by detectives on December 31.

Up to press time, a file was being prepared to be presented to Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard for a decision on the matter.

Around 10 p.m. on December 23, security officers at St Mary's Children's Home discovered a newborn baby abandoned outside the orphanage's front gate.

The baby's umbilical cord was still attached.

The baby, who was wrapped in an old jersey, was believed to be two hours old at the time of the discovery.

The newborn was taken to Wendy Fitzwilliam Paediatric Hospital at Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in Mt Hope to undergo medical tests.

Initial reports stated the abandoned newborn was a baby girl.

In a telephone interview with the Express on December 27, chief executive officer of the North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA), Collin Bissessar, stated the abandoned baby girl was named Mary Teresa by the nurses caring for her.

Bissessar yesterday reiterated the claim that the baby was a girl.

"It is a girl...it is a girl. Rest assured, it is a girl," Bissessar said,

Mary Teresa, an abandoned baby at the hospital, however, is not the baby who was abandoned outside St Mary's Children's Home.

The Express yesterday confirmed that the baby who was dumped outside the orphanage is in fact a boy and has been named Josiah Doe by nurses.

The two abandoned babies are at the Wendy Fitzwilliam Paediatric Hospital.

The Express was unable to ascertain the circumstances surrounding Mary Teresa's abandonment.

The name Josiah is of Hebrew origin and the meaning is "Jehovah helps".

Josiah's mother, who has two other children, abandoned him because of financial difficulties, she told detectives investigating the case.

She said she grew up without a father and that Josiah's father abandoned her in her time of need. Her mother is hearing impaired.

Neighbours expressed shock that she abandoned Josiah. A neighbour who requested anonymity described Josiah's mother as a " God-fearing church woman" and a "good mother".

"I never expected that at all. She goes to church and I thought she was a God-fearing church woman. I would never have believed it was her.

"I always thought she was a good mother because you would see her with the two children. This really shocked me," the neighbour said.