Everything About the 22YO M’sian, Teo Jia Xin, Who Killed Her Newborn In a Cereal Box

A 22-year-old Malaysian student, Teo Jia Xin, who was studying in the UK, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for killing her newborn in a cereal box.

Here’s a summary of what happened.

Everything About the 22YO M’sian, Teo Jia Xin, Who Killed Her Newborn In a Cereal Box

22-year-old Malaysian student Teo Jia Xin was convicted of murdering her newborn daughter at Warwick Crown Court on 24 October.

Teo, who had arrived in the UK to study at Coventry University, deliberately concealed her pregnancy from everyone around her, including friends and flatmates.

On 4 March 2024, she gave birth to a full-term baby girl in the en-suite bathroom of her student accommodation.

After delivering the baby, who was born alive and could have survived, Teo made the deliberate decision to place the infant in a cereal box, which she then sealed in a plastic bag and concealed within a suitcase.

According to prosecutor David Mason KC, Teo later admitted to police that the baby had survived for “at least a number of minutes” and was still moving when she placed her in the box.

The case came to light when a concerned friend, who was staying in the same building, discovered Teo’s bed covered in blood and forced her way into the room.

Despite the friend’s intervention, Teo refused to leave the bathroom.

When paramedics were called, she declined medical assistance, causing them to leave. Her condition later deteriorated, forcing her to take a taxi to the hospital.

At the hospital, Teo initially denied giving birth despite showing clear signs of having done so.

After a positive pregnancy test, police were alerted to investigate the potential abandonment of her baby.

It wasn’t until two days later that Teo finally confessed, leading authorities to discover the deceased infant in her bedroom, inside the suitcase that her flatmates had unknowingly helped move.

Teo’s Defense During Trial

During the trial, Teo’s defense claimed she had been hearing voices telling her to harm the baby, but this argument failed to convince the jury.

She claimed that she was fearful that her family and friends in Malaysia would discover her pregnancy, claiming it would impact her studies.

James Leslie Francis from the Crown Prosecution Service emphasized that Teo had multiple opportunities to seek help but instead chose to carry her pregnancy in secret and give birth alone.

The prosecution noted that she deliberately deceived friends, medical professionals, and law enforcement to prevent the discovery of her baby.

On 25 October 2024, she was sentenced to life imprisonment.