Hong Kong man says he fathered 12 surrogate babies in Thailand
Human trafficking suspect admits that he is the father of three babies already in Japan after Thai police discover nine surrogate infants
A Hong Kong-based man suspected by Thai police of possible involvement in human trafficking now claims to have fathered 12 children through surrogacy, three more than previously thought, reports said yesterday.
Following the discovery in a Bangkok condominium of nine surrogate infants and toddlers believed to share the same Japanese biological father, the man - named by Thai media as Mitsutoki Shigeta - reportedly told his lawyer there were three more babies already in Japan.
Thai police have determined that the 24-year-old man did depart from Bangkok International Airport with a baby in both March and July, sources said.
His lawyer said the man - who lives in Hong Kong - has said that the children in Bangkok, aged between one month and two years old, were all his offspring born through surrogacy. The lawyer said his client spent 200,000 baht (HK$48,000) per month to raise them.
Thai police suspect the man may be engaged in human trafficking, and had the children in order to sell them. His lawyer denies the allegation.
Records show that the man, who left Thailand on Thursday for Macau, has visited Thailand 65 times over the past two years.