Nineteen members of a child trafficking ring have been sentenced to prison in Indonesia for buying and selling babies for illegal adoptions. The group, led by 70-year-old Lie Siu Luan, trafficked at least 34 babies and forged documents to make the adoptions appear legitimate, according to the trial held in West Java on Tuesday.
Sentences handed down to ringleader and brokers
Lie Siu Luan, the syndicate's leader, was sentenced to seven years in prison, lower than the 10 years prosecutors had sought. She admitted to supplying babies to at least four people in Singapore, who promised to pay at least 18,000 Singapore dollars (£10,300) for each child. She claimed she 'didn't know' her actions were wrong and that her Singaporean partner led her to believe sending babies abroad for adoption was allowed.
The group's main broker, Astri Fitrinika, received a six-year, seven-month sentence after being found to have sourced most of the children. This included the child of Dani Hidayat, who reported his newborn baby kidnapped in April 2025 after meeting a woman on a Facebook adoption group. That woman was Fitrinika, who claimed she could not have children and offered to adopt Hidayat's baby in exchange for money. When she failed to make a payment, Hidayat went to the police. Officers found Fitrinika had procured many more babies.
Other defendants and their sentences
Djaka Hamdani Hutabarat, the only male defendant, acted as a broker and was sentenced to six years and seven months. Six women who acted as caregivers for the trafficked babies each received three years and four months. Two more women received the same sentence for acting as brokers. Lai Siu Ha, who falsified documents including birth certificates and Indonesian family cards, was handed a six-year, seven-month sentence. Her lawyers expressed disappointment, stating that what she did was 'purely in line with her assigned role' regarding civil registration documents.
Appeals and state care for rescued babies
At least one convict is appealing their sentence. Fitrinika and two other defendants are considering their options. However, ringleader Lie is understood to have accepted her fate. Her lawyers said, 'This was a consideration from our client, essentially accepting the decision. What is clear is that this is still much better than the demands of the prosecution service, who charged her with 10 years.'
Indonesia's Ministry of Social Affairs stated that children rescued from the trafficking cases will be assessed to determine their legal status and suitable care arrangements, including possible return to biological families. Otherwise, they may be placed in alternative care 'in accordance with child protection regulations, with the goal of ensuring safe, legal, and long-term caregiving.' Eight babies remain under state care at an orphanage in West Java.
