A woman reportedly slit a heavily pregnant mother’s throat, and ripped out her unborn baby in a deranged attempt to pass off the child as her own, according to media reports.

According to the Mail Online, Ashley Wade allegedly killed her victim Angelikque Sutton by slitting her throat, before performing a Cesarean section in an apartment in the Bronx. 

The attacker, who is said to suffer from mental health issues,  reportedly ripped the baby girl from her mother’sstomach, and was later found her by her boyfriend cradling the newborn next to Sutton’s body.

Hysterical, Wade started shouted "It's my baby", as her partner surveyed the scene. 

She told her partner that she had started wanting Sutton’s baby after hearing her tell neighbours about her pregnancy.Wade’s boyfriend immediately called the police. A local councilman in the Bronx, Andy King, told the New York Post:

“It looks like the baby was surgically removed. That this is a possible baby snatch – this is unforeseeable. With the holidays approaching, what a bloody way to start the season.”

Police are said to have found blood smeared over staircases and doorways that lead to the body of Angelique Sutton. In more graphic reports on the story police are said to have found a placenta and knife lying in the hallway next to the bathroom. 

The mother was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, but authorities confirm the baby girl is doing well.