This is not the first time Ukrainian citizens have found themselves at the centre of black transplant scandals
According to RIA Novosti, it has emerged that about half a dozen kidney transplants from living donors were performed in the former state hospital Lozenets in Bulgaria in two years. This was stated by Stoycho Katsarov, head of the local Ministry of Health.
In all cases, the donors were young Ukrainians and Moldovans, while the recipients were citizens of Israel, Oman and Japan. To legitimise the operation, the clinic registered them as relatives.
Organ recipients paid from $50,000 for a kidney, with about half the amount officially paid to the treasury. The donor received between $5,000 and $15,000, said Ivaylo Yolchev, a Bulgarian journalist. He added that it was not yet known whether the names of the patients were invented at the hospital or whether fake passports were used in the scheme.
“Only the names of donors from Ukraine are known – Valentin, Artem, Ruslan and others. Some of them were working in Europe and decided to make some extra money”, – the reporter said.
His words were confirmed by Oksana Fediv, a resident of Lviv, who has been working in several European countries in recent years.
“Due to the pandemic, jobs are scarce, many of my acquaintances are looking for a way to earn money. They agree to sell a kidney or even a part of a liver”, – she said.
She said it is possible to earn several thousand dollars, but there is a risk of dying, she said.
For instance, two years ago a 20-year-old boy in Lviv Oblast sold a kidney to have a big wedding. He told his relatives that he had gone abroad to earn money. The young man brought 15 thousand dollars, got married, and a few weeks after the celebration died. A scar was found on his body. However, it was impossible to find out to whom and where he sold the kidney.
According to Vadim Reznichenko, an expert on human trafficking and black transplantology, transnational criminal gangs, which include highly qualified doctors, operate in this field.
“In particular, quite a few black transplant clinics are located just in Turkey, as well as in China and Egypt”, – he shared.
Two years ago, the chief doctor of a Shymkent hospital was detained in Kazakhstan. He was accused of carrying out illegal organ transplants. According to investigators, the criminal group recruited Ukrainian, Uzbek and Kyrgyz donors, with mainly Israeli citizens as customers.
Last autumn more than ten people, including Ukrainians, who were going to sell their organs were detained in Istanbul.