Parents gave conflicting accounts of what led up to baby being found dead: Coroner’s court

SINGAPORE: The death of a baby that led to a man being charged in court has come under the scrutiny of a coroner’s court, with the investigating officer stating that the parents gave conflicting accounts of what happened before the child died.
There is no gag order imposed on this case.
Two-month-old Nur Misha Syaifa Mustaqim was pronounced dead by paramedics in the early hours of Dec 3, 2022, at a one-room rental flat in Bukit Batok.
Media reports in May last year stated that her father, Mustaqim Rosli, then 31 years old, was charged with causing the baby’s death by suffocating her.
However, in a coroner’s inquiry that opened on Tuesday (Aug 27), the investigating officer said this version of events was put forward by the baby’s mother.
The mother has since retracted this account, saying she had said so because she was feeling a sense of loss and was worried for the family.
On Tuesday, the lead investigating officer on the case, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Tan Boon Kok shared his investigation report with the coroner’s court.
Paramedics arrived at the flat at about 1.05am on Dec 3, 2022, and Nur Misha’s mother opened the door to let them in.
The baby was lying on the sofa, with her father performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on her as guided by a phone operator.
The paramedics took over and spoke to the father, who said he had discovered his baby daughter blue and not breathing at about 10pm on Dec 2, 2022.
He said he had left her alone as he thought she was sleeping. However, he realised hours later, on Dec 3, that she was not breathing and called for an ambulance.
The baby did not respond to CPR and was pronounced dead soon after paramedics arrived.
Her father gave contradictory answers on why he took so long to contact the authorities, DSP Tan said.
The case was handed over to the police when they arrived. The officers interviewed Mustaqim, but he could not give a consistent account of events.
What he said was also inconsistent with police camera footage from the housing block, and the case was handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department of the Singapore Police Force.
The flat was observed to be well-furnished, with two fridges stocked with food and beverages for the family, which comprised the couple, their other children and the baby.
There were no signs to suggest neglect, and the flat was observed to be orderly. The family had stayed there for about two months after moving out from Nur Misha’s maternal grandparents’ home.
DSP Tan went through the account by Nur Misha’s mother of what happened that day.
At about 7.30pm on Dec 2, 2022, she was home with her husband, the baby and their two older children.
She described feeding the baby, changing her diaper and performing other chores.
At one point, she said her husband woke up because Nur Misha cried and he placed her in a prone position instead of a supine one. A supine position is when one’s face and abdomen face up.
This alarmed the mother, who asked her husband why he did that. According to her, a dispute broke out and they began swearing at each other.
She said she tried to put Nur Misha on her back, but her husband returned the baby to a prone position, on her front.
The baby later stopped crying and her mother made sure the baby was breathing before lying down in frustration and falling asleep. She claimed her husband remained awake.
Nur Misha’s mother later woke up to the sound of keys rattling, which she recognised as her children trying to go to their neighbour’s house to play.
She then saw that Nur Misha’s face and lips were blue. She said she shouted at her husband to wake up and tried to rouse the baby.
She later called her older children in and told them their sister had died, and the family gathered and cried.
She said her husband was talking to himself about what to tell the police and also told her what to say to the police and paramedics, but she was not listening as she was very distraught.
Eventually, her husband called for an ambulance and was guided by the operator to perform CPR.
When the police arrived, they interviewed Nur Misha’s mother, who gave two versions of events. She later said both versions were untrue.
One version stated that she had woken up and seen her husband covering Nur Misha’s face with a bolster until the baby was unresponsive.
According to DSP Tan, Mustaqim’s version of events stated that he was home with his wife and children.
His wife fed and changed Nur Misha’s diaper that night. Around 8pm, the baby started crying, so he placed the baby on her front as he felt she was “tired of sleeping on her back”.
He then patted her gently until she fell asleep and got his wife to check that the baby was breathing. He said he was tired and asked his wife to take care of the baby before turning the baby to lie face up and going to sleep.
At around midnight, he heard his son playing outside and woke his wife up. He then turned on the light and saw Nur Misha lying on her front, with her face pale. 
He could not detect her breathing and later called 995.
When the police interviewed him, he said he had been sleeping when he was woken up by his wife, who said his right hand was blocking the baby’s nose.
He later admitted that this chain of events did not happen.
An autopsy of the baby found that she appeared to be a “well-nourished infant”, with no injuries or bleeding. Her cause of death was not ascertained.
DSP Tan said that Nur Misha’s parents gave different versions of events leading up to the discovery of the child. They also differed on what the baby’s final resting position was.
Investigations cannot confirm or ascertain the time the parents first found her in an unresponsive state.
However, the police said they do not suspect foul play, as investigations showed no indication of ill-treatment, neglect or abuse of the baby.
The child was given food, clothing, medication and toys, as well as all her necessary milestone inoculations. 
State Coroner Adam Nakhoda adjourned the case, saying he would take time to write more comprehensive findings.
The hearing was attended by Nur Misha’s grandparents and a woman who identified herself to the media as Nur Misha’s mother.
She had been introduced in open court by the coroner as Nur Misha’s aunt.
When asked by CNA if Mustaqim’s court case was still pending, she said it was and that she wanted to divorce him.
CNA has contacted the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) on whether there has been any update to Mustaqim’s court case.