From the second half of 2007 to June 2010, a group of 13 individuals, including Li Cuiyun and Ma Mingliang, frequently traveled between Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, committing 20 crimes and trafficking 27 children. The youngest child among the 27 was only 10 days old when he was abducted, while the oldest was about three or four months.
"They are poor, so they would suffer with their own parents. It's better for them to be sold to good families!" said Li Cuiyun, who was pushed onto the defendant's seat, claiming that she sold children out of "good intentions." A significant number of defendants held similar views. In late December 2011, this major case of child trafficking was sentenced in the first trial at Lianyungang Intermediate People's Court.
□ Correspondent Sheng Mao, Dong Yanan, reporter Zhang Yu from Modern Express, and cartoonist Yu Xiaoxiang for this edition
First, let's see their consequences:
One was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, another to life imprisonment, and the remaining 11 were sentenced accordingly. The youngest child among the 27 was only 10 days old when he was abducted, while the oldest was about three or four months. Although Li Cuiyun et al did not publicize the matter of buying and selling children, many nearby villagers were aware of it. Especially from the second half of 2007 to 2010, many locals had learned about Li Cuiyun’s activities involving child trafficking. Soon, someone reported this clue to the public security authorities, saying that there were people in the village involved in child trafficking. Subsequently, the public security authorities began investigating.
On June 5, 2010, Li Cuiyun and others bought two female infants from Zhejiang, intending to sell them in Donghai, but they were caught on the spot by the local public security authorities while bringing the two children to Donghai.
On the day the case broke, the public security authorities were unaware of Li Cuiyun's other criminal facts. While voluntarily confessing to the details of this case, Li Cuiyun also confessed to her previous involvement in child trafficking. Following up on these leads, the police eventually arrested all 13 defendants led by Li Cuiyun. Upon investigation, it was confirmed that these 13 defendants committed 20 cases of buying, selling, and transporting children, totaling 27 children, including 22 girls and 5 boys. These children were aged between just 10 days and about three or four months when they were trafficked.
According to the prosecution's charges, the main culprit Li Cuiyun participated in 17 cases, involving the trafficking of 23 children, while Ma Mingliang was involved in 6 cases, trafficking 10 children. Due to the severity of the case, the large number of people involved, and the fact that the crime gang operated across provinces, the nature of the crime was extremely heinous. Lianyungang Intermediate People's Court attached great importance to this case, holding multiple discussions regarding it.
At the end of December 2011, this major case of child trafficking was sentenced in the first trial. The court ruled that the actions of Li Cuiyun and 12 others constituted the crime of child trafficking. Among them, Li Cuiyun was involved in trafficking more than 15 children, which was deemed particularly severe, while Ma Mingliang and five others were involved in trafficking more than 3 children, which was considered serious. Ultimately, the court sentenced Li Cuiyun to death with a two-year reprieve, deprived her of political rights for life, and confiscated all her personal property; Ma Mingliang was sentenced to life imprisonment, deprived of political rights for life, and had all his personal property confiscated. The other 11 defendants were respectively sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment ranging from 3 to 14 years, along with fines ranging from 3,000 yuan to 40,000 yuan.
(Note: The names used in the article are pseudonyms.)
Next, let's look at their dealings:
Act 1 Transformation
Wanting to adopt a child, asking neighbors for help
Profit is tempting, so join the gang
Zhang Xiaofeng, over 40 years old, is from Donghai, Lianyungang. His family has been farmers for generations, but farming income could hardly support his family, so he went to work in a small town in Huzhou, Zhejiang, with a few fellow villagers. At the time, his brother-in-law Xie Zhiwei, from Yunnan, was also working in Zhejiang. Xie Zhiwei went with his fellow villagers. During their work, because he was related to Zhang Xiaofeng, the two groups often kept in touch.
In the second half of 2007, one of Zhang Xiaofeng's neighbors in Donghai wanted to ask Xie Zhiwei to check if anyone locally had given birth to a child they didn't want. "If someone wants to adopt a child, can you help find someone?" Zhang Xiaofeng asked Xie Zhiwei. At the time, Xie Zhiwei and others were working in a brick factory. He found out that there was indeed a nearby villager who had just given birth to a girl and wanted to give her away. In such a situation, both parties quickly agreed.
In the second half of 2007, Zhang Xiaofeng rented a car from Donghai and drove directly to Zhejiang. Through Xie Zhiwei and his fellow villager Ma Mingliang, he bought two female infants for several thousand yuan each. After bringing the children back to Donghai, he immediately sold them to two families in the same village. The two girls were sold for more than 20,000 yuan in total.
What is surprising is that the buyers of these two female infants, seeing the lucrative profits, later joined the child trafficking gang.
Act 2 Leader
Temptation is hard to resist, try something new
The top position is waiting
Ma Mingliang, a Yunnan native, met Li Cuiyun from Donghai during his interactions with Zhang Xiaofeng and others from Donghai. Initially, Zhang Xiaofeng and others approached Li Cuiyun, wanting her to get involved in child trafficking, but although Li Cuiyun was poor, she refused because she felt her own children were still too young.
Later, after learning that selling a child could make a lot of money, she couldn't resist the temptation and embarked on the criminal path of child trafficking.
In February 2008, Zhang Xiaofeng brought a female infant from Zhejiang and delivered her directly to Li Cuiyun's home, asking her to contact buyers to sell the child.
Rural women like to inquire about gossip in various villages, so when she looked for buyers, it wasn't difficult. Soon, Li Cuiyun helped find a buyer and sold the female infant. Afterwards, Li Cuiyun received several thousand yuan as payment, which made her taste the benefits.
Act 3 Excuses
Desperately whitewashing oneself
So-called kindness is revealed
After being apprehended, Li Cuiyun confessed that she had two reasons for participating in child trafficking. "One is out of kindness, and the other is because I need money at home," said Li Cuiyun, explaining that she had four children to raise, so her financial pressure was very high. Regarding her so-called "kindness," Li Cuiyun gave her own explanation.
"The families of these children are very poor, and their parents don't have the money to raise them, so they voluntarily sell their children," said Li Cuiyun. She claimed that they never deceived or stole children; all transactions were voluntary on the part of the parents. She believed she was doing a "good deed" because through their "help," the children were sold to families with better conditions, which she thought would benefit the children's future growth. This, she claimed, was their "kindness."
In fact, most of the 13 defendants involved in child trafficking held views similar to Li Cuiyun's. Many of them didn't realize they were committing a crime but instead saw themselves as playing the role of a "child-giving goddess," helping biological parents solve problems while bringing blessings to childless parents. "We just earn some travel expenses," said Li Cuiyun, adding that she had made over 30,000 yuan in total.
Act 4 Bestiality
Selling one's own son for cash
Denying involvement until caught
With the addition of Li Cuiyun and others, the gang continued to grow. The members mainly came from Donghai in Lianyungang and Yunnan, mostly fellow villagers, and knew each other well. Among the 13, there were three women, including Li Cuiyun, and the rest were men. Their ages ranged from over 40 to under 30. Two couples were involved, and the others were relatives or fellow villagers. "I think my wife and fellow villagers wouldn't betray me," said Ma Mingliang after being arrested, stating that he trusted all the members involved.
All 13 were farmers who usually worked as laborers. However, once someone in Donghai proposed adopting a child or someone in Zhejiang wanted to sell a child, the group became busy. Ma Mingliang and his wife both worked in Zhejiang, and his life wasn't easy either. During the process of child trafficking, he even didn't want his own child anymore and asked Li Cuiyun to help find a buyer.
In May 2008, after Ma Mingliang found a buyer through Li Cuiyun, he let Li Cuiyun take away a newborn boy from his wife and sell him to a buyer in Donghai. "I introduced the child hoping he would be raised by a good family," said Ma Mingliang when he was first arrested, denying that the baby was his own flesh and blood. It wasn't until the police questioned him multiple times that he admitted the boy he sold was actually his own child.
Act 5 Illusion
Secretly doing "good deeds"
Falsely caring for "children"
During the gang's operations, men and women had different roles. Although they believed they were doing "good deeds," they acted covertly and avoided exposure to avoid detection by the authorities. To prevent being caught, they let the women carry the children and handle transportation. Women like Li Cuiyun could easily soothe the children during transport, reducing suspicion, while the men mainly handled contacting sellers and buyers or arranging transportation.
Li Cuiyun claimed she took good care of every child. If a child she brought back to Donghai was sick or unhealthy, she would temporarily place the child in her home, taking care of them until they recovered before selling them to the next buyer. In the fifth month of the lunar calendar in 2009, she bought a boy and a girl from Zhejiang through Ma Mingliang. The girl was very healthy and quickly found a buyer, but the boy, suffering from an illness, remained unsold.
At the time, Li Cuiyun was already the mother of four children, but she believed that rural people wouldn't notice if a child suddenly appeared in her home. Therefore, she took the sick boy to her in-laws' house, asking them to help raise him.