A Facebook group dedicated to clandestine adoptions was used as the meeting point for an agreement to hand over a newborn baby in Gondomar, Portugal, in exchange for €2,500. The case resulted in three convictions for human trafficking after authorities uncovered false declarations of paternity intended to bypass legal adoption procedures.
According to the Jornal de Notícias and an indictment described by the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the woman involved had announced online in 2023, while still living in Brazil, that she would give birth to children for payment. She reached an agreement with a couple in December of that year, when she was already pregnant by her partner.
The baby was born at home on January 21, 2024, without medical assistance. After complications following the birth, the mother was admitted to hospital. There, she identified the man from the couple as the baby’s father, and he confirmed the statement. Prosecutors said the aim was to register him as the father and later enable an adoption by his partner.
The child was handed over to the couple several days after the mother was discharged, and the payment was made. Doubts about the paternity later led to the intervention of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. DNA tests identified the mother’s partner as the biological father, contradicting the official registration.
The baby was removed from the couple, and the protection proceedings resulted in a court-ordered placement for adoption.
The mother was sentenced to 21 months in prison and ordered to leave the country. The woman in the couple received a one-year suspended sentence, while the man was given an 18-month suspended sentence. The mother’s defence is considering an appeal to the Porto Court of Appeal.
The case highlighted how the social network was used to establish contact between the parties, while false paternity statements were used to give the child’s transfer the appearance of a legal adoption.
Sources: Pplware.