Woman, 43, charged with child trafficking attempt in Armenia

YEREVAN. – The Investigative Committee of Armenia continues its activities to find out all the circumstances of cases of illegal adoption of children in the country.

One person has been charged with attempting to buy two children for adoption, the Investigative Committee informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

On November 18, the Investigative Committee accepted the criminal case initiated by the National Security Service on abuse of power and going beyond official power to attempted child trafficking.

According to the data obtained from the investigation, during 2016-2018, a number of employees of a medical center and state institutions in Armenia had convinced more than a dozen mothers-to-be to give up their children for adoption and consent to adoption in spite of their will.

It turned out that one of the people who attempted to adopt and buy children is a female resident of Yerevan, born in 1976. The 43-year-old woman had reached an agreement - with foreign citizens, in one case, and with Armenian citizens in the other - to launch - in exchange for €20,000 and $5,000, respectively - their adoption of healthy children in orphanages in Armenia, but she failed to accomplish her goal for reasons beyond her will.

The 43-year-old woman has been charged.

The court granted the investigator's motion to remand her in custody, but at the same time, it allowed her to be released on bail.

The investigation continues.

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