Sunday, October 17, 1999
Couple sells son, 14, on Internet for $400
Boy says 3 siblings also sold or given away
The Associated Press
CANTON, Ohio — A couple sold their son for about $400 to a Virginia man who advertised on the Internet that he wanted to adopt a school-aged boy, Stark County officials said.
Diana Ivan, an officer assigned to investigate the family, filed a statement this week in Juvenile Court that said the 14-year-old revealed that his parents were paid $300 to $400 for answering the ad.
The boy and five of his siblings have been taken from their parents, who live in Alliance, while police investigate. The boy's parents, aged 34 and 35, have not been charged.
Their son alleges three other chil dren were either sold or given away.
Ms. Ivan said the boy's mother tried to conceal the transaction and that the Virginia man mistreated the boy.
Local officials were notified by Virginia human services officials, who took the boy from the man when the boy was admitted to a psychiatric hospital and the man could not prove legal custody.
The boy was taken to Virginia in August and was never enrolled in school. He tried to commit suicide with the man's handgun in September.
The Virginia man is in Ohio seeking permanent custody of the boy.
County officials have been working with the family for five years but the “parents continue to treat the children poorly,” according to Ms. Ivan's complaint.
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