A mother who left her newborn son in a manger at a New York City church will not face criminal charges for giving him up, a prosecutor said on Wednesday.

A custodian on Monday found the crying infant with his umbilical cord still attached wrapped in towels and placed in the indoor nativity scene at the Holy Child Jesus Church in Queens, New York police said.

The baby's mother was located by police and Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said on Wednesday she would not be prosecuted because she gave up the child in accordance with the state's "Safe Haven" law.