An Infant Sold by Its Parents Was Granted Victim Status in Mykolaiv Region

A newborn baby whose own parents sold the child in Mykolaiv Oblast has officially been granted victim-of-human-trafficking status for 2 years. This followed intervention by Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights.

The ombudsman spoke about the case on October 18, European Anti-Trafficking Day. He learned about the sale of the baby from media reports and immediately contacted the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, demanding that the documents needed to protect the child’s rights be prepared.

The report did not provide details about the sale of the baby or say whether the parents had been held accountable.

Dmytro Lubinets stressed that such crimes are not isolated incidents and cited other cases in which his intervention was needed to protect minors:

• A 16-year-old girl was recruited by a 50-year-old woman for the purpose of subsequent sexual exploitation. After the ombudsman contacted the Sumy Regional Military Administration, the minor was granted victim-of-human-trafficking status.
• In Zakarpattia, a mother handed her own children over to strangers for 2 weeks in exchange for $1,000. The children were allegedly to be exploited. Following the commissioner’s intervention, they were also granted the relevant status.
• A teenager from the temporarily occupied part of Luhansk Oblast remained in the occupied territory after his relatives were killed. The people who took him in forced him to do hard labor, threatened him with violence, and fraudulently took possession of his documents, including his Ukrainian passport. The boy was also granted victim-of-human-trafficking status.
• In another region of Ukraine, a mother tried to sell her own child. The necessary documents were prepared after Lubinets repeatedly contacted local military administrations. The child received the protection provided by law.

According to the National Social Service of Ukraine, as of October 1, 2026, 793 people, including 22 children, had been granted victim-of-human-trafficking status.

The ombudsman explained that official recognition as a victim gives a person access to state support provided for by law: free medical, psychological, social, and legal assistance, as well as a one-time financial payment.

“No child can be treated as a commodity. It is our duty to respond to such cases in a timely manner, protect victims, and ensure they have access to assistance,” stressed ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.

We previously reported:

• The baby was just one day old: parents in Mykolaiv sentenced to 11 and 10 years for selling their daughter
• Mother sent her children out to beg: she valued her 11-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter at $1,000
• In Lutsk, a mother sold her 6-year-old son for $25,000
• $10,000 for a baby: Mykolaiv couple sold their own newborn child
• “Help,” Mykolaiv-style: man recruited people with disabilities to beg