'House of horrors': California couple at center of surrogacy scandal arrested on child abuse charges
The nanny involved in the scandal remains at large, according to investigators.
Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies raided an Arcadia home on Tuesday morning and arrested a couple accused in a surrogacy scandal involving 21 child victims, authorities said.
Silvia Zhang and Gunjun Xuan, the man and woman who housed the children and are at the center of the case, were taken into custody during a joint operation involving the sheriff's department and the FBI.
According to prosecutors, the couple allegedly misled surrogates they paid to carry their children through their own surrogacy company. A criminal complaint lists 10 counts against the couple and 55 overt acts of conspiracy to commit child abuse
Xuan's attorney, Mitchell Krems, released the following statement:
"My client is innocent. It is the nanny's wrongdoing who went on the run. He is being targeted for exercising his constitutional right to have a large family."
L.A. County District Attorney Nathan Hochman and Sheriff Robert Luna held a news conference after the arrests, where they outlined the disturbing allegations against the defendants and Hochman described the Arcadia mansion as "a house of horrors."
Prosecutors said the couple misrepresented their family circumstances to some surrogates, including how many children they already had.
The two-story home allegedly had 32 motion-activated surveillance cameras, allowing the defendants to monitor the children and nannies. Prosecutors allege young children were subjected to repeated physical punishment and abuse by nannies in so-called "learning centers."
Zhang and Xuan are accused of instructing nannies about physical discipline and told them not to leave visible marks on the children.
According to the D.A., prosecutors are asking for bail to be set at $100 million in the case, describing the couple as a flight risk.
The couple has been under scrutiny since last summer, when they were arrested on suspicion of felony child endangerment and later released without being charged.
A search warrant obtained by KABC shows the investigation began after their then-2-month-old son suffered an apparent head injury.
According to investigators, the couple's nanny, Chunmei Li, was captured on security camera video holding the infant inside the home. The warrant states that footage shows the baby "cries for a few seconds until a thud or hit is heard," and that "crying suddenly stops." Police wrote that after Li's "attempt to wake him up" was "no success," the video shows Li "shake him."
Li remains at large, according to investigators.
Last summer, the 21 children found in the home were placed in the custody of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.
The investigation determined that the children are the product of a surrogacy operation owned by Zhang and Xuan.
This is a developing story. This article will continue to be updated as more information becomes available.
