California pair charged with abusing at least 14 surrogate-born children

October 7, 2026

A California couple, Guojun Xuan and Silvia Zhang, faces criminal charges for allegedly abusing at least 14 children born through surrogacy arrangements they orchestrated through their own company. Authorities discovered the abuse after Zhang brought an injured two-month-old to a hospital, leading to a raid that uncovered multiple "learning centres" in their mansion monitored by cameras, where nannies allegedly physically disciplined the children. Twenty-one children were removed from their custody, with surveillance footage reportedly showing repeated instances of hitting and slapping.

Who is affected

At least 14 children (alleged abuse victims), with 21 total children removed from custody
Guojun Xuan, 66, and Silvia Zhang, 39 (defendants facing criminal charges)
Chunmei Li, 58 (nanny charged with child abuse, currently fugitive)
Multiple nannies who supervised the children
At least two surrogate mothers who were allegedly deceived
Surrogate mothers from around the country who carried embryos for the couple

What action is being taken

Xuan and Zhang are being prosecuted on multiple counts of child abuse and dissuading a witness
Law enforcement is searching for Chunmei Li, who has a $105,000 warrant for her arrest
The 21 children remain in state custody following their removal in July 2025

Why it matters

This case represents an unprecedented scale of alleged child abuse involving surrogate-born children, according to the Los Angeles District Attorney. It exposes potential vulnerabilities in the surrogacy system and demonstrates how surrogacy arrangements can be exploited when proper oversight is lacking, raising serious questions about the regulation and monitoring of private surrogacy companies.

What's next

If convicted, Xuan faces up to 17 years and four months in prison, Zhang faces up to 11 years and eight months, and Li faces up to 12 years in prison.

Read full article from source: BBC