Eight held for child trafficking

On a tip-off that babies are stolen and sold for a certain amount from Tiruvarumbur in Tiruchy  to childless parents across the state, SP Zia Ul Haq ordered a special team led by Tiruverumbur Inspector Gnanavel and Anti-Child Trafficking unit Inspector Azim and Child Protection Unit officer Jayachitra. The team which conducted an investigation found that a male baby aged 102 days and another male baby aged 25 days went missing from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchy while they were undergoing treatment.

The further investigation found that the missing babies were sold to a couple in Tiruverumbur and another to a couple in Kuvalakudi.

Meanwhile, the team, on suspicion, secured a couple R Govindan (32) and G Aswini (27) and the couple confessed that they had bought the baby for Rs 3 lakh from its mother M Bhuvaneswari  (42) from Kamanayakkanpalayam three months back.

Similarly, the team secured a couple P Kumar (30) and K Saradha (27) of Puthupatti near Thuraiyur who told the team that they had purchased the 25-day-old male baby from the couple R Dharmaraj (30) and D Rani (27) from Kuvalakudi. The team also found two women M Lourdu Mary (52) and N Velammal alias Vennila (42) as agents in child sales. Subsequently, the team arrested Aswnini, Bhuvaneswari, Dharmaraj, Rani, Kumar, Saradha and the agents Vennila, Lourdu Mary and seized a cash of Rs 82,000 from Vennila.