Father 'sells' daughter so he can afford a second son

A father of four has been arrested for selling his youngest daughter for 28,000 yuan (S$5,895) so he could afford a second son.

The police have detained the suspect, surnamed Wang, from China’s Guizhou province, the Global Times reported.

The child has been returned to her family, said a press officer surnamed Xue.

Wang and his wife, surnamed Li, who were married in 2007, already had three daughters and a son, the police said. But Wang insisted on having another son because tradition in his hometown favours families that have at least two sons.

As migrant workers, the couple had trouble supporting their four children.

With Li pregnant with their fifth child, Wang decided he could spare a daughter so he could afford to raise a second son. He convinced Li that they should sell their infant daughter to an infertile couple he found in Jiangsu province.

The wife then filed a false police report saying that her daughter was abducted. Li claimed that she fell unconscious after the kidnapper patted her on the shoulder.

The police did not buy her story, noting that it was impossible to drug someone into unconsciousness by patting the person on the shoulder.

She later admitted that they had sold their daughter. She was released on bail because she is pregnant

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