Seremban police chief Yatim Osman said a report was lodged at 7.22pm.

The infant had been under the care of her grandmother since 9am while her parents were at work.

“At about 2.30pm, the baby was left to sleep in a cradle while her grandmother was cooking and hanging clothes.

“Not long after that, the grandmother realised the baby was no longer in the cradle. After searching, she found the victim face-down in a pail containing soapy water in the house’s backyard,” he said in a statement.

Yatim said the child was rushed to a nearby clinic before being referred to Hospital Tuanku Jaafar Seremban. She was pronounced dead by a medical officer at 4.30pm.

“A post-mortem was conducted at 1am today and the cause of death is still under investigation pending the laboratory report,” he said.

The case is being investigated under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001 for child neglect.