Heilongjiang father hands him himself into police after hurting child
Staff Reporters 2013-08-28 16:28
Guoguo is examined at a local hospital in Heilongjiang. (Internet photo)
A father turned himself into police in northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, admitting to pushing four steel needles into his 56-day-old infant daughter, according to HJNews.
The infant nicknamed Guoguo was hospitalized earlier this month after coughing and foaming from the mouth. After an inspection, doctors removed a 5cm-long sewing needle found between her ribs. Two weeks later, Guoguo was rushed back into hospital where doctors found three further needles stuck through her lung and kidney. Local media picked up the story, sparking public outrage and the infant's family vowed to catch the person responsible.
On Tuesday morning, however, local police and members of Guoguo's family confirmed that the infant's father Yin Zhihe had turned himself in and confessed to the crime on Sunday.
According to reports, the 24-year-old father seemed uninterested in his daughter's condition and played with his smartphone when Guoguo was having surgery to remove the needles. The mother publicly cursed the person responsible for hurting her child, while Yin remained silent and indifferent.
A family member said Yin committed the crime because he believes a superstition which said sticking needles into his daughter will bring a male baby to the family. The family also consulted with a fortune teller, who said Guoguo will bring bad luck to the father and only one of them can survive.
