April 20, 2025

Mexican doctors in baby-stealing ring

Baby costs US$1,140

Mother and baby at press conferenceThree doctors, a nurse and a receptionist at a private hospital in Mexico City have been arrested for allegedly selling newborn babies to childless women. The mothers were told that their children had died and had been cremated. The scheme was uncovered when a young mother who had had a caesarean, Vanesa Edith Castillo, received a tip-off that her “deceased” child was alive and had been sold to a Mexican couple. This child was not hers, but the trail eventually led to her own daughter, who had been sold for 15,000 pesos (US$1,140). Police do not know how many babies have been sold. The suspects face charges of trafficking in minors, organised crime and falsifying documents. ~ Latin American Herald Tribune, Nov 13; Independent, Nov 5

Michael Cook