Authorities have cracked down on an illegal kidney harvesting operation in Hubei province's Wuhan, shedding light on the horrific practices of underground organ traffickers.
Authorities from the Wuhan Public Security Bureau arrested more than 10 members of a kidney trafficking group on August 17, Chutian Metropolis Daily reported in a feature story. The group consisted of various personnel, including a professional medical team with a surgeon, two nurses and an anaesthetist. These traffickers had been carrying out both kidney removals and transplant operations in a nondescript villa in the Jiangxia district of Wuhan.
Police said it was rare to see a trafficking group carrying out kidney transplant operations, which require more medical expertise than the standard removal processes which most black market gangs specialise in.
Wuhan authorities lead members of the organ trafficking gang away. Photo: Screenshot via Chutian Metropolis Daily
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“If they’re really carrying out both kidney removal and kidney transplant operations here at the same time, then that’s the first time I’ve heard of such a thing,” said a member of the investigation unit whose identity was not revealed in the Chutian Metropolis Daily report.
Li's operation was conducted in secrecy and his mobile phone was confiscated. Photo: Screenshot via Chutian Metropolis Daily
Reporters were first tipped off to the existence of the kidney traffickers by a whistleblower with the pseudonym, Li Wei. Li, who had fallen badly in debt, had considered selling his kidney after he had been propositioned by members of the trafficking gang over the Chinese QQ online messaging service.
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After agreeing to surgery, Li met members of the gang at a variety of indiscreet locations. He was eventually shuffled off to a hospital for preliminary examination and then transferred to a secret villa in the Jiangxia district. On his trip to the villa, Li was blindfolded and his mobile phone confiscated. He can only recall fragmented details of his experience.
