Mother sought after baby's remains found near Edinburgh cemetery

Police want to trace the mother of a baby whose remains were found on a path near a cemetery.

A dog walker discovered the body on an old railway path in Edinburgh's Seafield area last night.

Detectives said the investigation was at an early stage and did not reveal the sex of the child, but said it may have been a newborn.

They appealed for the mother, who may be in need of medical or emotional support, to contact them.

Detective Chief Inspector David McLaren said: "We are carrying out further investigation to try and establish the cause of death of that child and how the child came to be on the path.

"Obviously there is a mother out there who may be in need of some sort of medical assistance or emotional support.

"I would ask that if she's out there and hears this appeal that she gets in touch with us at Police Scotland so that we can provide her in the first instance with that assistance or support that she may need and, secondly, to try and establish just exactly how this baby came to be on the path."

The remains were found at around 5pm in undergrowth on Restalrig path near Seafield Cemetery.

Police sealed off the area as a forensic team attended the scene.

Officers stood on a footbridge over Seafield Place, which was cordoned off and there was police tape around a section of the residential street which borders the public park known as Leith Links.

Mr McLaren said it was difficult to say how old the child was, but confirmed it was "a young infant, a baby".

He said it was possible the baby was a newborn.

"Clearly a line of inquiry will be around expectant or new mothers to try and establish whether or not there's information in that community," he said.

Asked whether the remains had been hidden, he said they were "not overtly visible" from the footpath.

Police are exploring the possibility that the mother was local to the area.

Mr McLaren said: "That's something we're looking at. It's a popular path, it's used by both dog-walkers and cyclists. It's difficult to say at this time but that's a possibility.

"Certainly in terms of looking at expectant or new mothers, the immediate focus will be in the local area."

Mr McLaren said it was difficult to say how long the remains might have been at the spot.

He said: "I must stress our investigations are at a very early stage. As the day progresses, hopefully that kind of information will become more apparent."

Appealing to the public for information, he added: "The quickest way for us to get answers is for the mother or a family relative or friend to get in touch with us if they have any suspicions about a mother who was expecting and is maybe not with child now. I would urge them to get in touch with us."

PA