In what appears to be a surrogacy scandal in California, 21 children, who were all born by surrogate mothers, were removed from a home and placed in protective custody.
The children were discovered when authorities went to investigate the suspected child abuse of a 2-month-old infant who suffered a traumatic head injury, ABC 7 reported.
“We discovered numerous children — 15 children to be specific — ranging in ages from 2 months old to 13 years old,” Arcadia police Lt. Kollin Cieadlo said. “Many of the children were birthed through surrogacy and then the male and female at the residence took legal guardianship of those kids.”
“The discipline, both verbally and physical, was severe to the point where it supported the beliefs that child abuse was occurring inside the home,” Cieadlo added.
Authorities later confirmed to the outlet that 21 children were in the home, 17 of whom are three years of age or younger, according to witnesses. All 21 children are in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services.
The children were under the legal guardianship of Guojun Xuan, 65, and Silvia Zhang, 38 — both of whom were residing at the home. The pair were initially arrested for felony child endangerment, but reportedly released from custody.
An arrest warrant has been issued for the nanny, Chunmei Li, 56. The woman was viewed on surveillance footage by authorities. Li remains at large.
The FBI confirmed this week that they are investigating the matter, but declined to comment further on the case. The Daily Wire’s Mary Margaret Olohan, on July 3, was first to confirm that the feds were investigating allegations of the apparent China-tied, for-profit baby selling operations.
Executive director of the nonprofit Center of Bioethics and Culture, Kallie Fell, said the scandal appears to be a surrogacy scheme.
“Anything goes,” Fell told ABC 7. “And these clinics, these agencies are not regulated by any governing body.”
“That to me smells of trafficking, child trafficking,” she added. “What are the intentions of having that many children at home through these assisted reproductive technologies?”
Earlier this month, Fell told The Daily Wire, “For years, we’ve warned that the commercial surrogacy industry operates in legal and ethical gray zones, creating conditions ripe for abuse. This case isn’t just about one agency or one couple; it reflects a deeper pattern of treating women as wombs-for-hire and children as commodities.”
“We believe this case points to a form of organized reproductive trafficking, and the public should be outraged,” she added. “And it won’t stop unless we hold the fertility industry accountable and close our borders to international surrogacy arrangements.”
