A 17-year-old is now suffering from renal failure after selling one of his kidneys for the equivalent of $3500.
The kid, identified only by his surname, Wang (previously identified as “Zheng“), spent his miniscule share of the $35,000 the sale of his kidney generated on a new iPad and iPhone. The rest of the money was split between the five cretins running the scam, two of which, including the surgeon who performed the operation, have been identified as employees of a provincial hospital in Yunnan province. The ringleader of the operation, He Wei, apparently set it up to help pay off his gambling debts. Several other suspects believed to be involved in the case are currently being investigated.
The organ traders were arrested after Wang’s mother noticed her son’s shiny new apple products and asked him where he’d got the money. Of course, if he hadn’t given the game away by telling her there and then, the fact he probably began peeing and vomiting blood as his remaining kidney struggled to do the work of two probably would have. He’s currently in hospital undergoing treatment for renal failure.
Though apparently banned in 2007, organ trading still presents a massive problem for China, particularly in its poorest regions. The country’s older population has been quick to cast their wrinkly judgment on the younger generation, using Zheng’s undeniably poor decision-making skills as “an extreme example of the rampant materialism of modern China.”
Source: National Post
