One more person held in ovum donation case in TN

A 25-year-old man was arrested here on Saturday for forging documents to falsely project a minor girl as an adult in order to sell her ovum (egg) to fertility clinics, police said.

According to police, John, a resident of Surampatti near here, had provided the fake birth certificate and Aadhaar card of the girl to several fertility clinics in Erode, Salem and Hosur.

The accused was arrested today after four hours of interrogation, they said.

Three people were arrested on Thursday on charges of forcing the 16-year-old girl to donate eggs to fertility clinics and hospitals, and were booked under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The matter came to light after the girl escaped from the trio and narrated the ordeal to her relatives in Salem.

Subsequently, a complaint was lodged with the police by them.

Indirani, the victim's mother, was staying with her paramour, Syed Ali.

Syed Ali is said to have sexually assaulted the girl several times in the last four years and forced her to sell eggs to fertility clinics with the help of Malathy, an agent.

All the four were remanded to judicial custody.

Meanwhile, police teams visited infertility cure centres in Erode, Perundurai, Salem and Hosur, and conducted inquiry.