The Police Service of Northern Ireland is to conduct DNA tests of about 600 women and girls in the Carryduff area of Co Down to discover the circumstances behind the death of a newborn baby girl.
The baby suffered head injuries and stab wounds. Her body was found in a bin bag behind the Lough Moss Leisure Centre in Carryduff on the outskirts of Belfast two months ago.
Detectives are hoping to test, on a voluntary basis, the DNA of 600 girls and women aged 13 to 45 from the Carryduff area, starting on Monday.
Police have already called to over a thousand homes in the locality.
Det Insp Roy McComb said he was anxious to speak to the mother of the child and was prepared to meet her anywhere at any time, and with a member of the clergy, if requested.
He was conscious that he did not know the full circumstances behind the death and understood the mother of the baby could have been the victim of a crime.
PSNI officers briefed local political and church representatives about the tests and are to hold a public meeting on the issue in Carryduff tomorrow.
Ms Geraldine Rice, an Alliance councillor for the Castlereagh area of Belfast, said police would handle the test sensitively. "This was a very sad death of a newborn baby. It is not only important that the police catch this child's killer, but that the mother receives any medical attention she might require," she said.
Ms Rice said police gave assurances that DNA samples would be destroyed after the test. "This is not a woman hunt. It is a criminal investigation into a tragic death", she added.
