Thai woman arrested for illegal surrogacy on her return from China

Police arrested a Thai woman at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok on her return from China for operating an illegal surrogacy racket.

The arrest followed a crackdown on a transitional criminal gang in the Isaan province of Nong Khai in May last year. The criminal gang procured Thai women for illegally providing surrogacy services to foreigners.

During the operation, Department of Special Investigation (DSI) officers rescued a boy named Taenthai, believed to be a surrogate child. Following the rescue of Taenthai, the DSI successfully rescued another six other children who were about to go to China in September.

In the same month, the DSI raided three health facilities in Bangkok linked to this illegal surrogacy gang and seized surrogacy documents as key evidence in the case.

An arrest warrant was issued for a Thai woman named Saifon, who had carried and delivered Taenthai, but she managed to avoid arrest and leave the country. The DSI later discovered that Saifon had scheduled her flight from China to Thailand on January 13. The DSI then collaborated with the Immigration Bureau and successfully apprehended Saifon on that day.

According to the DSI, the purpose of illegal surrogacy in this case was unclear. Foreign parents might opt for surrogacy because they wish to have children. However, officers also suspected that foreign parents might desire children in their bloodline for organ transplant surgery or organ trafficking.

Under the Act on the Protection of Children Born Using Technology, anyone providing surrogacy services without permission faces up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine of up to 10,000 baht, or both. Those involved in commercial surrogacy could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to 200,000 baht.

In a similar case reported in April last year, a Chinese national who married a Thai man to obtain Thai citizenship was arrested for illegal surrogacy, identity theft, and human trafficking. The illegal surrogacy was used to prolong the stay of Chinese nationals in Thailand and also to help those Chinese nationals set up businesses in Thailand.