The Phnom Penh health department has announced an investigation into the death of a newborn who allegedly choked while being fed by staff at the privately owned VIP Sorphea Maternity Hospital.

Health department deputy director Keo Vibol confirmed the department would begin an investigation today but offered no further details.

The mother, Sor Chan Veasna, gave birth to the boy on Thursday and the infant died on Saturday after he was transferred to Calmette Hospital.

“My son died because of the recklessness of the doctor feeding the unnatural milk to him, and it made him choke and caused him to die,” she said.

However, she blamed herself for letting someone else feed her baby, and did not want to file a complaint as his body had already been cremated, destroying any evidence.

Dr Pech Sothy, owner of the private hospital, claimed the death of the baby was not related to choking but was due to health problems. He said the baby was pale, wasn’t eating and had a fever the night before.