31-07-2025
Disturbing details emerge about mother who hid pregnancy from her partner then put the baby in a garbage bag behind a lounge
A woman who hid the fact she was pregnant until her partner found the baby's discarded body in a plastic bag behind their sofa has fronted court.
Monique Ellen Burton, 35, was charged with interfering with a corpse after her newborn baby boy died on August 19, 2022. She appeared in Perth District Court this week.
The court heard Burton gave birth in her house and wrapped the baby in clothing before hiding him behind the piece of furniture. She said he was stillborn and an investigation was unable to determined if the baby had taken a first breath.
Her partner later discovered what he guessed was baby but, instead of checking what was in the bag, he put it unopened in a freezer in the backyard of their property in Geraldton, Western Australia.
It was later found by police after she went to hospital and medical staff found evidence she had given birth, reported the ABC.
Her defence lawyer, Anthony Elliot, told the court she had suffered from emotional anxiety which was linked with pregnancies.
A psychological report revealed Burton suffered from adjustment disorder, depressive episodes, unresolved grief, relationship difficulties and anxiety.
State prosecutor Jehna Winter said Burton hid the pregnancy from her partner, Shaun Bradley Balaam, medical staff and the authorities.
She had explained her stomach bloating was just a side effect of liver cirrhosis to help conceal the fact she was carrying a child, the court heard.
Burton was also charged with 11 counts of fraud after she set up a GoFundMe page asking for donations because of a made-up illness. She accepted $560 in donations from strangers before her scheme was exposed.
He partner woke up the morning after the birth to find his partner of 14 years pale and bloody in the bathroom and she was taken to hospital.
Nursing staff noticed she was suffering post-partum symptoms but Burton denied having given birth recently.
During this time Balaam returned home to search for a mobile phone his mother had lost, which was when the baby was discovered.
The court was told Balaam did not check inside the bag but had held a suspicion that it may have been a baby as his partner had a history of concealing pregnancies.
Instead of checking what was inside the bag Mr Balaam placed it in another bag which he then moved to the freezer because he said that was what would happen in a morgue.
Burton continued to deny she had given birth even after she was flown to King Edward Memorial Hospital in Perth.
'I don't know what is wrong with me,' she told hospital staff.
WA Police then attended her property and found the discarded baby in the freezer.
Burton was arrested and interviewed by police in January 2024.
She told them her memory was hazy and that she thought it had been a dream.
Burton pleaded guilty to interfering with a corpse in the Geraldton Magistrates Court in November 2024.
