Two-year-old girl found alive in suitcase on NZ bus

NZ ambulance in Auckland
A two-year-old girl is recovering in hospital after being found in a suitcase on a New Zealand bus. -AP

A New Zealand woman has been arrested on a child neglect charge after a bus driver found a two-year-old girl alive in a suitcase that was stowed in the luggage compartment.

The bus driver noticed movement inside the bag during a planned stop on Sunday at the settlement of Kaiwaka, north of Auckland, after a passenger asked for access to the luggage compartment, Detective Inspector Simon Harrison said in a statement.

When the driver opened the suitcase they discovered the two-year-old girl, who was very hot but otherwise appeared physically unharmed, Harrison said.

The child was taken to a hospital, where she remained on Sunday night.

The arrested woman was charged with ill-treatment or neglect of a child and will appear in court on Monday.