In writing this article I have focused only on five extreme cases of child abandon- ment, or more appropriately murder, omitting the less lurid ones. What follows is a story from one mother whom I interviewed while she was staying in police custody. I asked her to recollect all the events around the abandoning of her child. Since I inter- viewed her in prison, which does not ensure privacy nor a relaxed environment, the information obtained lacks specific details. It may also not be the definitive word and give all the answers. She was also not candid and expressive presumably due to the sensitive nature of the topic. I used a cassette recorder to record interviews verbatim. Verbal consent was sought from the participant to record the discussion and confidenti- ality of the proceeding was guaranteed. The discussion was held in Amharic, the local language. The names mentioned in this article are pseudonyms.