Costa Rica News – Costa Rica has experienced its first known case of an illegal adoption over the internet. It is a nightmare all around. A 17 year old girl, Josefina, gave birth and gave the baby to a couple she found online, without any legal process.
PANI, the ministry that looks out for children, has never heard of something like this before. They found this case by a complaint aired on the radio. It appears that the girls parents were unaware of the pregnancy, until the point when the girl wanted her baby back.
Four months after the birth and adoption, she had a change of heart. When the couple refused to give the baby back, the girl turned to her parents for help. Authorities intervened, and the baby is now with the birth mother.
There seems to be so much wrong with this entire scenario.
1. Where was this girl living where she was pregnant and her parents did not know?
2. How did she keep this from her parents for the multiple months where she was showing her pregnancy? Was she impregnated by a relative?
3. Was there money exchanged for the child? Most likely yes, especially in an illegal adoption.
4. Were the parents in on the adoption?
There is more to this story than the girl and her parents are letting out, and the only victim in this situation is the child.
It is illegal to give or receive any child for adoption without going through the law. It’s also illegal to promote illegal adoption, a charge which carries a prison sentence of 6-10 years.
The website they found each other on claims it is not made for that purpose, rather as a place to discuss topics related to adoption.
