China executes man trafficking 22 infants

A man convicted of trafficking 22 infants has been executed in central China's Henan Province, the Supreme People's Court (SPC) revealed Friday.

Following an order issued by the SPC president, the Zhengzhou Intermediate People's Court executed Tan Yongzhi, according to the SPC's statement, without detailing the exact date.

From February 2008 to April 2013, Tan, along with two accomplices, "bought" the infants in southwest China's Yunnan Province, transported them to Henan and sold them, the statement said. Four others involved in the crime chain also received sentences.

The parents of the 22 infants have not been reached so far.

Tan, 69, was given a death sentence in 2014. He argued during the trial that he was "doing good" for those who wanted a baby, according to media reports.

"I was helping others and just acted as a go-between," Tan was quoted as saying in an earlier report by the Zhengzhou Evening Newspaper.

The report said Tan bought a boy for more than 30,000 yuan (4,580 U.S. dollars) and a girl at about 16,000 yuan. He then sold the kids for 1,000 to 3,000 yuan higher than what he paid.

China has intensified crackdowns on trafficking of women and children. The country sentenced 1,362 people with the crime in 2015, a drop of 50 percent from 2012, according to the SPC. Enditem