The Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed the woman was charged with human trafficking involving a minor, and she has since been convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison.
A 20-year-old woman from Dnipro, Ukraine, was reportedly arrested after allegedly trying to sell her two-year-old son for one million hryvnias (approximately $23,947) to a woman she knew. According to the Daily Mail, the mother told Ukrainian authorities that her son was interfering with her personal life and that she didn’t want to raise or care for him. Reports also suggest she intended to use the proceeds to start her own business.
The arrest took place as the transaction was underway, with police detaining the woman when she handed over her child and received the cash. Video footage from the scene shows officers counting the money and placing the woman in handcuffs, while a social worker carried the child to a waiting car to transfer him into care.
The Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed that the woman was charged with human trafficking involving a minor under Ukrainian law, and she has since been convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison. The child was initially examined by doctors and is now under the care of social services.
A comparable incident occurred in Moscow in 2019, where Rasulzhan Kyzy Barnokhon, a 23-year-old woman originally from Ufa, was arrested after attempting to sell her week-old baby for £11,500 ($15,299). Barnokhon reportedly viewed her children as obstacles to her personal life and sought to sell them so she could pursue relationships with men.
Activists from the NGO “Alternativa,” which combats human trafficking, intervened after spotting her online post offering her older daughter for adoption. Although relatives convinced her to abandon her first attempt, she tried again after the birth of her third child.
Barnokhon was apprehended after accepting payment and handing over her newborn to undercover buyers working with police. She admitted to the crime and faced charges of attempting to sell a minor, with a potential sentence of up to five years in prison.
Ukrainian authorities continue to investigate such crimes, and social services are involved in caring for affected children. The issue remains deeply troubling, with law enforcement agencies working to uncover and prosecute those involved in the sale and trafficking of minors.
