Up to 600 Northern Irish women and girls are to be DNA tested in an attempt to find the mother of a newborn baby found murdered near Belfast last March.
Police will begin the screening process next Monday in the hope of finding the mother of the baby, who was found on March 26th in a black bin bag on a laneway at Carryduff, outside Belfast, having suffered stab wounds and head injuries.
It is understood the baby may have been dead for several weeks.
Police will DNA test about 600 females between the ages of 13 and 45 who are currently not pregnant. The procedures will be carried out on a voluntary basis and all records will be destroyed once the mother has been identified.
Detectives in Carryduff are urging the baby's mother to come forward.
Chief Inspector Roy McComb said: "She must be feeling very confused and frightened, but we can help her if she would please get in touch."