No record of mother or deceased baby in SA health system
Quick Look
- South Australian health authorities cannot confirm the birthplace of a baby found deceased at the Tollgate Motel in Glen Osmond.
- The parents, Yue Ning Lieu and Benjamin Nicholas Houghton, are in custody facing charges of criminal neglect and concealing remains.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
A deceased baby was discovered at the Tollgate Motel in Glen Osmond on October 10. The parents have been charged with criminal neglect and concealing human remains.
South Australian health authorities are still unable to confirm the birthplace of a deceased baby found at the Tollgate Motel in Glen Osmond.
Health Minister Blair Boyer said the government had been unable to confirm if the baby boy, discovered in the suburban motel south-east of the Adelaide CBD on October 10, was born in South Australia.
However, he said it was "not necessarily" the case that the child had been born interstate.
"I am sure that we will find that out. That is a question we will get the answer to in time," Mr Boyer said.
According to police, post-mortem analysis showed the boy was aged between six and seven months, and had been "deceased for a period of time".
Mr Boyer said a search of SA Health databases found no record of the baby or his 42-year-old mother, Yue Ning Lieu, who is also known as Linda Lieu.
He said SA Health sites had a shared record-keeping system, so their arrival at any aligned service would be searchable by government records.
"If they had visited one of the SA Health sites somewhere in South Australia, detail of that would be captured in that electronic medical record system," Mr Boyer said.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said on Monday that the family was not known to the SA Department of Child Protection.
Ms Lieu and the child’s father, Benjamin Nicholas Houghton, 40, were arrested and charged with criminal neglect and concealing human remains.
They have been detained under the Mental Health Act.
Police said the boy's parents had been staying at the motel since their arrival in SA at the beginning of the year.
They faced a bedside court hearing on Monday and have been remanded in custody until May 2027.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Court proceedings to continue in May 2027.
Very likely · Within years
Open Questions
- Where was the baby born?
- What was the cause of death?