Children abducted and sold for years: Woman sentenced to death

Beijing (China) - A woman has been sentenced to death for child trafficking in China. As the state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing the Intermediate People's Court of the city of Guiyang (Guizhou province), the defendant was accused of abducting and subsequently selling a total of 17 children together with two accomplices between 1993 and 2003.

Yu Huaying (center) was sentenced to death in China. She is said to have kidnapped and sold children for years.
Yu Huaying (center) was sentenced to death in China. She is said to have kidnapped and sold children for years.  © Screenshot/X/@WebDPN

The court found that Yu Huaying's actions had plunged her parents into despair, as they had been searching for their missing children for years.

Due to the seriousness of the crimes, a lenient sentence had been ruled out despite a confession.

Yu had already been sentenced to death last year for the abduction of eleven children. However, in the course of appeal proceedings it became clear that Yu had abducted and sold six more children.

Child trafficking has been a major problem in China in recent decades, particularly in connection with the former one-child policy. The Chinese authorities have taken increased measures.

In recent years, DNA analyses have also increasingly helped to reunite families.

However, the fact that the death penalty is used for particularly serious cases is a constant source of international debate.