Mum's harrowing motive for hiding two stillborn babies in sheets and binbags
A mother-of-five who concealed the remains of her stillborn babies has avoided prison.
Egle Zilinskaite, 31, delivered her two full-term children "alone and without medical support" before concealing them in blankets and binbags in her home. After the babies' bodies were found, she pleaded guilty to two counts of concealing the birth of a child and two counts of preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body.
The mum was today handed a suspended prison sentence of two years. Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke told Cardiff Crown Court a "fundamental distrust of authorities, both in the UK and based on her experiences in Lithuania" had led to Zilinskaite concealing her pregnancies, adding: "You made a deliberate decision not to seek assistance from the authorities because you knew the authorities could and would remove your children if necessary."
READ MORE: Mum who buried babies at home after hiding births is spared jail
The court heard the bodies of Zilinskaite's two babies were found in November 2022 by police searching her home in Maes-Y-Felin, Bridgend.
The end terrace was being searched as part of a separate inquiry when officers noticed a "foul smell" coming from the upstairs area of the house.
Cops discovered the first baby concealed in blankets and bin bags in the property's attic and the second child wrapped in bed sheets in an airing cupboard. Medical examinations revealed the children, referred to as Baby A and Baby B in court, were full-term babies born in August 2019 in a separate property and September 2021 in the address searched.
They were found to be the biological children of Zilinskaite and her then partner Zilvinas Ledovskis.
Due to the severe decomposition of the remains, the court heard no cause of death could be ascertained for the children.
A pathologist however determined it was "not unreasonable" to conclude both babies died at around the time of birth due to the presence of placenta and umbilical cord".
During Zilinskaite's sentence hearing, defence lawyer Matthew Roberts told the judge: "Her emotions were all over the place, she didn't know what to do. She had a difficult relationship with her partner who was an alcoholic and was also emotionally abusive towards her."
Judge Lloyd-Clarke handed her a suspended prison sentence of two years, with an additional 200 hours of unpaid work and 15 days of Rehabilitation Activity Requirement. Indicating why she had not sent the mum-of-five to jail, she said: "While you have committed serious offences, the deaths of your children were not your fault and you have suffered the loss of two children at birth."
Ledovskis, 50, faced the same charges but was found not guilty on all counts in May this year after the prosecution said it would be presenting no evidence against him. The court heard a funeral for the babies had taken place the same month.
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