Sheriff: Karima Jiwani, Baby India’s mom, has concealed pregnancies before

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Karima Jiwani, the woman arrested for allegedly abandoning her infant daughter four years ago, has apparently been living in the metro Atlanta city of Cumming ever since the incident.

On Thursday morning, Forsyth County officials arrested Jiwani in connection with the case. During a Friday news conference, officials announced they were able to identify the child’s biological father through advanced DNA testing which led to Jiwani’s arrest.

In June 2019, deputies found the baby in a plastic bag along a wooded strip of land near Daves Creek Road in Cumming. The bag with “Baby India” inside had been dumped on top of a pile of leaves and sticks.

• Mother arrested 4 years after newborn found abandoned in bag in Forsyth Co.

Other than her arrest, Jiwani, 40, has no known criminal record. According to Forsyth County Sheriff Ron Freeman, Jiwani has a history of either unknown or concealing previous pregnancies.

Jiwani’s name is listed as the registered agent of a company called S-A-J Food Mart, which is linked to a home in Cumming. She was once a licensed cosmetologist in Georgia for a number of years, using a Decatur address.

During Friday’s new conference, Freeman repeatedly said Jiwani could have given up the child and faced no criminal charges.

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Jiwani faces criminal attempt to commit murder, cruelty to children in the first degree, aggravated assault, and reckless abandonment charges in connection to the 2019 incident. She is being held without bond in the Forsyth County Jail.

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Under Georgia’s Safe Haven law, a mother can drop off their newborn up to 30 days after giving birth to a hospital, fire station or police department without criminal penalty. According to a 2020 National Institute of Health report, at least 4,100 children were safely surrendered nationwide since 1999.

If you have questions or are considering abandoning a newborn, you can call or text the National Safe Haven Alliance at 1-888-510-BABY (2229).

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