Eight arrests as baby-trafficking ring dismantled on Crete

At least 182 cases of exploitation of women since December 2022 in the field of egg retrieval and surrogacy and more than 400 cases of deception through sham in vitro fertilization (IVF) were detected at a fertility clinic on the island of Crete, according to police, who arrested eight people.

The members of the ring, which was dismantled by the General Regional Police Directorate of Crete’s Organized Crime Department, were reportedly committing human trafficking through “industrial births,” illegal adoptions of babies, as well as defrauding patients through fake IVF treatment.

According to the Hellenic Police, the ring exploited women who were in a vulnerable position, with those arrested using them as egg donors and surrogate mothers, while deceiving patients through fictitious embryo transfers and mediating illegal adoptions.

The benefit gained by the criminal organization per surrogacy program usually ranged from €70,000 to €100,000 and in some cases reached €120,000.