On February 5 this year, a family's pet dog brought back the body of a deceased infant in its mouth, in the village of Suure-Lähtru, Lääne-Nigula Municipality, Lääne County, sparking a major Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) search.

The mystery over the identity of the new-born's mother and her whereabouts and well-being remained, however, until now it seems.

The North Africa Post reports that the General Directorate of National Security of Morocco (DGSN) announced on Sunday that an Estonian woman which the authority says is wanted for murder had been arrested in the Dakhla region (which lies in the disputed region of Western Sahara – ed.), following cooperation via the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL).

The suspect, aged 31, was sought by Interpol at the request of Estonian judicial authorities, the North Africa Post reports, and had been declared wanted under a "red notice," due to alleged involvement in voluntary homicide.

The woman was placed in custody pending her extradition to Estonia, the DGSN said.

Back in Estonian Kaido Kõplas, head of the Police and Border Guard Board's (PPA) Western Prefecture, confirmed to reporters on Monday that the mother had been located in Morocco, adding "as far as we know, she is at the police station [there] and is alive and well."

The mother's identity was established based on DNA samples, revealing that she is a 30-year-old Estonian citizen, while her whereabouts were determined thanks to international cooperation, after which she was detained by the Moroccan authorities.

The next task is extradition back to Estonia though, given that Morocco is not an EU member state, this may take a lengthy period of time, Kõplas went on, and is predicated on a decision from the state of Morocco.

At present it is not clear if the detained woman is the victim of a crime and/or of mistreatment, whether she traveled to Morocco voluntarily, and whether she went there to intentionally evade the authorities, or for some other reason.

These and other facts will be examined on taking a statement from the woman, Kõplas went on.

Kõplas said the PPA currently does not know why the woman's pregnancy and childbirth took place without medical assistance, and, again, whether she herself could be a victim of a crime.

Evidence-gathering will include a new terrain search in the area in which the deceased infant was found, Kõplas added.

Maarja Germann, senior prosecutor at the Prosecutor's Office, Western District, also said that getting a clear picture of what exactly happened will not be possible until the woman in question has been brought to Estonia.

"The fact that the woman has been located is a major step forward in the ongoing procedure," she added, noting that it is in any case "far from over."

"The criminal procedure to investigate what exactly happened to the woman and the child will continue with more routine activities," Germann said.

These criminal proceedings are being overseen by the Prosecutor's Office, Western District, in the context of the section of the Penal Code dealing with infanticide.

This categorization may change in the course of criminal proceeding, depending on the established circumstances.

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