West Java police spokesman Senior Commissioner Hendra Rochmawan told ST that 14 babies allegedly trafficked from Indonesia to Singapore are currently still in the Republic. -- PHOTO: COURTESY OF WEST JAVA POLICE
SINGAPORE/JAKARTA (The Straits Times/ANN): One year before an Indonesian baby trafficking ring was uncovered in 2025, an adoption agent in Singapore reported an alarming phone call she had received to the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF).
In that April 2024 call, a woman had told Ms Alice Kaveree, the managing director of Lotus Child Adoption Agency, that she was an agent from Pontianak and offered to supply babies for adoption – with falsified DNA and birth certificates.
The woman claimed she had already handed four Indonesian babies to an adoption agency in Singapore and was working with a few others. Ms Kaveree rejected her offer and e-mailed MSF on the same day.
In response to The Straits Times’ queries, an MSF spokesperson confirmed on Jan 24 that they had received Ms Kaveree’s e-mail, and had reviewed the adoption cases that matched the general descriptions provided.
“However, the review did not uncover discrepancies or suspicions to warrant further investigation or cancellation of any applications,” said the spokesperson.
In July 2025, news broke of the Indonesia authorities busting a baby trafficking ring which had arranged the sale of 25 infants since 2023. Of these, 15 babies were sent via Jakarta to Singapore.
Senior Commissioner Ade Sapari, director of special crime at West Java police, told ST on Jan 21 that a key suspect in the trafficking ring is from Pontianak and maintains extensive networks there.
Given the limited details available in 2024, it is unclear if the suspicious call Ms Kaveree had received was from someone in the same syndicate.
The MSF spokesperson said that with further information provided through media reports in 2025, and with more specific names from the Indonesian authorities, the ministry was able to identify which cases were linked to the ongoing investigations in Indonesia.
“Together with relevant authorities, we are working closely with our Indonesian counterparts to review allegations, ensuring that the cases are dealt with as expeditiously as we can, and to safeguard the welfare and interests of the children,” said the spokesperson.
S’porean agents allegedly involved
Three Singaporean adoption agents with the initials Mr T.N., Mr P.T. and Mrs E.G. were allegedly involved in the ring, West Java police spokesman, Senior Commissioner Hendra Rochmawan, told ST on Jan 22.
Their full names will be given when the syndicate’s court trial starts in Indonesia by March. The Singapore and Indonesian governments said on Jan 9 that they are working together on the case.
Indonesian investigators have identified 26 Indonesian suspects with varying roles, ranging from brokers and baby caretakers, to bogus mothers and document forgers.
Syndicate members allegedly approached vulnerable expectant parents on social media and offered up to 20 million rupiah (S$1,500) for them to surrender their babies, said investigators.
Mr Hendra said Indonesian agents described the babies and their backgrounds to prospective adoptive parents in Singapore, facilitated by Singaporean agents.
The process included video calls to show the babies to the prospective parents, said Mr Ade.
The parents would then sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU), setting out the costs and terms involved.
“Some babies were brought to Singapore (by the Indonesian ring), some others were collected in Jakarta by the Singapore sides (parents) who had been convinced and signed an MOU,” said Mr Hendra.
West Java police said Singaporean adoptive parents paid more than $20,000 per child.
ST understands that of the 15 babies, one baby has been brought back to Indonesia, while the other 14 are still in Singapore.
Indonesian authorities detained 12 suspects in July 2025 after uncovering an alleged baby trafficking ring that sent more than a dozen infants to Singapore. -- PHOTO: HERALOEBSS/X
Laws and lawbreakers
In Singapore, hopeful adoptive parents first attend mandatory briefings and undergo an adoption suitability assessment. Then, they can choose to adopt a child under state care, or find a child through their own contacts or an agency.
Adoptive parents must ensure that the sourcing, matching and placement of the child under their care comply with the laws of both Singapore and the child’s country of origin, according to MSF’s website.
Adoption agencies also have to do due diligence on the children’s backgrounds, and those that knowingly bring in children of suspicious origin will be dealt with, said Minister of State for Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming in Parliament on Jan 14.
Tighter laws under the Adoption of Children Act (ACA) came into effect in October 2024.
Biological parents now need to sign their consent documents before an independent third party, and these documents are longer and more stringent than before, said senior lawyer Sandra Ong from Gloria James-Civetta and Co.
Agencies must comply with stricter regulations, including publishing a breakdown of their fees, said Mr Derek Choo, associate director of the family law and probate department at PKWA Law Practice.
Anyone who suspects the law has been broken in the adoption process, including through false or misleading documents, must report it to the authorities or risk being fined and jailed.
Mr Choo said these safeguards have made the adoption process more robust, but challenges remain in cases involving foreign-born children, where certain aspects of the child’s background depend on information from overseas authorities.
“Some actions taken in the child’s country of origin may fall outside the immediate knowledge of Singapore agencies, and this can pose practical challenges when verifying documents or timelines,” he said, adding that birth registration processes may be less stringent in some countries.
Mr Choo said adoptive parents who genuinely follow the proper legal process are generally treated as having acted responsibly and are not the target of enforcement.
Some adoption agents told ST that they have received suspicious calls from overseas individuals who offer to give up a child for adoption, but have incomplete documents or refuse to meet a lawyer to sign adoption papers.
Ms Kaveree, who handles mainly adoptions from Malaysia, said that as part of her checks, she personally meets birth mothers and ensures the children have birth certificates from reputable government hospitals.
Ms Eulene Toh, head of operations at Singapore adoption agency SteppingStones, said birth parents are counselled to find out why they put up their child for adoption, and to make sure they understand its implications.
She said her agency does not know any of the affected parents in the latest case, but is aware of couples who applied for a Dependant’s Pass for children from Indonesia whose applications were subsequently not approved.
‘Being sold a product’
For adoptive parents, it often boils down to how much they trust their agent.
Ms Melissa Anne Tan, 46, who adopted her daughter Kaitlyn from Pontianak in 2018 after inquiring at over five local agencies, said she could only check informally with Indonesian acquaintances if Kaitlyn’s birth certificate looked legitimate.
“I could only do what I could do. I wouldn’t know what a real birth certificate looks like,” said Ms Tan, a sub-editor at a travel trade media company.
She felt more assured after seeing that Kaitlyn resembled her birth parents in photos, said Ms Tan, a single mother with a 19-year-old son from her previous marriage.
The birth parents also came to Singapore to sign a letter affirming the adoption, with the agency’s lawyer present.
Ms Tan said she trusted that MSF, to whom she had to submit the documents to secure a Dependant’s Pass for Kaitlyn, would conduct thorough checks to ensure their legitimacy.
Back in 2016, a 57-year-old teacher who wanted to be known only as Mark said he and his wife had tried to adopt a baby girl from Medan, Indonesia, through an agency after three unsuccessful rounds of in-vitro fertilisation.
But Mark was alarmed as he felt the payable items, such as airfare and hotel accommodation for the birth parents, did not amount to the proposed eye-watering bill of $20,000.
The couple ultimately did not go ahead with the adoption due to their misgivings about the process. “I felt like I was being sold a product,” he said.
Under the ACA, agencies can charge only for reasonable items such as medical bills, legal fees and fees for adoption-related services, but the law does not specify what constitutes a “reasonable” amount.
Indonesian police seeking Singapore’s help for probe into alleged baby trafficking ring
South Korea moves to end ‘baby exports’; state to take full responsibility for adoptions
Despite the updated laws, Ms Kaveree said some agencies give adoptive parents two separate bills: one for submission to the authorities, and another, higher bill that is kept between the parties involved.
Ms Toh said SteppingStones maintains a transparent approach in all aspects of the adoption process, adding: “Any financial payments made are strictly for purposes related to the adoption.”
Ultimately, it will be for the authorities to determine whether the child should be returned to Indonesia, taking into account the circumstances of the case and the best interests of the child, said Ms Ong, the senior lawyer.
Madam Serene Goh, 54, who in 2014 adopted her only daughter from overseas via an adoption agency, said there should be thorough checks by the authorities of both countries before adoptive parents meet the children.
Otherwise, it is painful for both the adoptive parents and children if things go wrong, said Madam Goh, a media professional at a non-profit agency.
“The child is innocent, but they’re being bounced around... that’s not right for the child and they are going to suffer very long-reaching circumstances.” - The Straits Times/ANN
