The sisters of a woman who claims her newborn child was murdered and buried in the garden of the family home in Dalkey, Co Dublin, have disputed her allegations.
They said they were not aware she was pregnant at the time she claims to have given birth and said they had no knowledge of any alleged abuse that took place in the family home.
The firm of solicitors which represents the woman at the centre of the allegations, who is known as "Niamh", yesterday declined to comment.
In an interview with the Evening Herald, the woman's three sisters, identified as Catherine, Margaret and Esther, said the effects of the allegations on the family had been "devastating". One of the sisters, Esther, said their mother had been particularly hurt by the allegations.
"Mum is a very happy-go-lucky kind of woman. But she's gone harder since all of this came out. She's lost her children and is now trying to protect herself. She was a very soft mum and didn't like smacking," she said.
"To our knowledge we have never been aware of our sister ever having been pregnant before she got married and had her first child around 1979 or 1980."
The woman at the centre of the claims says she was sexually abused as a child by members of her family and that she gave birth to two infants.
She said the first child, called Noeleen, was murdered in 1973 and dumped in a lane in Dún Laoghaire. The child, she claimed, had been stabbed by her mother with a knitting needle.
She later claimed she gave birth to a second child, John, who was buried in the garden of the family house in Dalkey.
After 10 days of searching the property several weeks ago, Garda forensic experts found no evidence of human remains. However, they said they were continuing their investigation.