Kuala Lumpur  - A Malaysian policewoman who kept hearing the sound of a crying baby made a shocking discovery when she found a five-day old baby stuffed in her Indonesian maid's cupboard drawer, news reports said Tuesday.

The woman, a senior police officer from the northern Perlis state, found the crying baby early Sunday but her maid initially denied the child was hers.

However, on Monday, the 22-year old Indonesian maid known only as Yanti, admitted to giving birth to the baby girl on Thursday in her toilet.

"I was afraid (sister) will scold me because I got pregnant. That's why I gave birth in the toilet and hid the baby in a cupboard drawer," Yanti was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times daily.

She said the baby had been living solely on plain water for the past five days, adding that the father of the child had returned to Indonesia.

"Only God knows the pain I went through at that time. After the baby was born, I quickly washed her and hid her in the drawer," said Yanti.

The maid has been sent to a maternity hospital, while the child has been placed under child protection, the report said. (dpa)