An Arcadia couple’s 21 children, all born through surrogate mothers, have been placed in protective custody amid a child abuse investigation. The Arcadia police discovered the children while investigating a traumatic head injury case involving a 2-month-old. Upon obtaining a search warrant, detectives seized security cameras from the home on Camino Real Avenue, uncovering alarming evidence. According to Arcadia police Lt. Kollin Cieadlo, “We discovered numerous children – 15 children to be specific – ranging in ages from 2 months old to 13 years old.”
The children, confirmed to be the offspring of 65-year-old Guojun Xuan and 38-year-old Silvia Zhang, were taken into custody by the Department of Children and Family Services. The couple was arrested for felony child endangerment but later released. An arrest warrant has also been issued for their nanny, 56-year-old Chunmei Li, who is the main suspect in the child abuse case and remains at large.
The investigation revealed that the children are products of a surrogacy operation owned by Zhang and Xuan. The case has raised concerns about potential child trafficking, as having more than 20 children through surrogacy is not illegal but is unusual. Kayla Elliot, one of the surrogate mothers, expressed her shock and desire to gain custody of the child she had for the couple. “It’s horrific, it’s disturbing, it’s damaging emotionally,” she said.
The FBI is working with Arcadia police to further investigate the origins of the children, but no charges have been filed yet. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office has not commented on the case. Concerns about the regulation of surrogacy agencies have been highlighted, with Kallie Fell, executive director of the nonprofit Center of Bioethics and Culture, questioning the intentions behind having so many children through assisted reproductive technologies.
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