Twenty-one children are in the custody of a California child-welfare agency while authorities investigate a Los Angeles-area couple and whether they misled surrogate mothers around the country.<\/p>\n
Fifteen children were removed from the couple\u2019s opulent home in Arcadia after an abuse allegation in May, and another six living elsewhere were also located, Arcadia police Lt. Kollin Cieadlo said. They range in age from 2 months to 13 years, with most between 1 and 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe one or two were born biologically to the mother,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are some surrogates who have come forward and said they were surrogates for the children.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silvia Zhang, 38, and Guojun Xuan, 65, are believed to be the legal parents, Cieadlo said.<\/p>\n
They were arrested in May after a hospital reported that their 2-month-old infant had a traumatic head injury, the result of a nanny at the home violently shaking the baby, Arcadia police said. The child was not taken to the hospital for another two days.<\/p>\n
Cieadlo said neglect charges were not formally pursued in order for an investigation to continue. The couple told police that they \u201cwanted a large family,\u201d the lieutenant said.<\/p>\n
Zhang produced what appeared to be legitimate birth certificates, including some from outside California, that list her as the mother of the children, Cieadlo said. <\/p>\n
He said the FBI is also part of the investigation. A spokesperson declined to comment when reached Wednesday by The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not familiar with how the surrogacy laws work,\u201d Cieadlo said. \u201cWe need to do a much deeper dive.\u201d<\/p>\n
TV stations in Los Angeles quoted women who said they were surrogate mothers for the couple but that they didn\u2019t realize so many other surrogates were also involved.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t immediately clear if Zhang and Xuan had a lawyer who could speak on their behalf. Zhang did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.<\/p>\n
Business records with the California Secretary of State show a company called Mark Surrogacy Investment LLC was previously registered at the couple\u2019s address. The most recent filing shows the business license was terminated in June. <\/p>\n
Kallie Fell, director of The Center for Bioethics and Culture, which believes surrogacy exploits women, posted a recent YouTube video of her interview with a Texas woman, Kayla Elliott, who gave birth last spring. <\/p>\n
\u201cShe was lied to. She was told this couple had one other child and they wanted one more child to complete a family,\u201d Fell told The Associated Press. \u201cShe didn\u2019t know they were the owners of the surrogacy agency. They operate with zero oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elliott didn\u2019t return a request for comment. But she is trying to raise money to seek to have the child placed with her.<\/p>\n