Child LaborArchive 2008–2016

Child Labor in Xichuan, Henan Province (2008)

A child labor case from 2008 in Xichuan, Henan Province, China.

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Documented on the original SlaveryMap (2008–2016). We don’t have a verifiable source on file yet. Know one?

What happened

the family gang was led by Ye Zengxi, 55, his son and daughter-in-law. Also involved was Ye's brother Ye Xiaolin. The gang used Ye's 12-year-old nephew to lure other children away from their parents' view with toys or food, and then whisked them away by motorbike. "The gang members had abducted nine children, all boys between two and eight years old, since April, and sold them to rural families," said Wang Jianmin, Nanyang Municipal Commission of Politics and Law secretary. Eight of the children were sold to rural families who wanted boys, while another was held captive awaiting a buyer before the police rescue.

Response and intervention

Ye Zengxi, 55,was executed by lethal injection with the approval of the Supreme People's Court. his brother was given a death sentence with a two-year reprieve by the Supreme People's Court and was deprived of political rights for life. All his possessions were confiscated. The other five criminals were given prison terms ranging from two to 13 years. All the gang members were ordered to pay 68,000 yuan (9,700 U.S. dollars) to the children's families. Chinese police had been investigating since the day of abduction

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