In Roudaki district, law enforcement officials have arrested a 34-year-old woman who attempted to sell her 8-month-old child for 100,000 somonis.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the woman, a resident of the village of Turdiyev in the same district, was apprehended on January 18 while receiving the money.
Criminal proceedings have been instituted against her under Article 167 of Tajikistan’s Criminal Code – child trafficking; an investigation is under way.
If found guilty, the woman could face a prison sentence of no less than five years.
The woman's motives and her perspective on the incident remain unclear, and there have been no reports about the child's current condition or whereabouts.
In a related incident, earlier in the Sughd province’s Asht district, a woman was arrested for attempting to sell her newborn child. A 34-year-old M. Madadova was suspected of violating the law concerning the trafficking in minors.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Madadova, a resident of the village of Iftikhor, was apprehended while trying to sell her one-month-old baby for 15,000 somonis (more than $1,400 USD).
Reports indicated that Madadova had been married four times and was raising five children. One of her children was adopted, two others were sent to an orphanage, and she was raising her youngest daughter on her own. When she was pregnant with her fifth child, the father abandoned her, leading her to attempt to sell the baby.
Madadova was arrested while receiving an advance of 5,000 somoni. An investigation has been launched into her case.