http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/07/29/mo ... ter-birth/Mom in France admits smothering 8 newbornsFrench prosecutors said Thursday they charged a woman with murder after she admitted giving birth to and killing eight babies in northern France.
The woman, Dominique Cottrez, said she hid the pregnancies and deaths from her husband, who had no idea what she had done, prosecutor Eric Vaillant told reporters. Cottrez is overweight and was able to conceal the pregnancies, he said.
Cottrez told investigators the reason she killed the babies was that she did not want to have any more children and did not want to see doctors for contraceptives, Vaillant said.
Despite earlier reports that the husband had been charged, Vaillant said he was free to go but may still be investigated.
Vaillant said there are no other babies' bodies left to be found.
The case came to light when a couple gardening in their backyard in the northern town of Villers-au-Tertre found two babies' bodies in sealed plastic bags and called police.
Police spoke to Cottrez and her husband, who had previously lived in the home, and Cottrez admitted immediately that she was the mother of the two babies, Vaillant said. She then told police about six others concealed in their garage, Vaillant said.
Those six bodies were also in sealed plastic bags but were covered by various objects, he said.
Cottrez had psychological problems from her first pregnancy, said Pierre-Jean Gribouva, the lawyer for her husband, Pierre-Marie.
"My client is in a deep state of shock," Gribouva told CNN affiliate BFM. "He had no idea about this. He has totally fallen apart."
