A Chinese woman who repeatedly became pregnant to avoid prison time has ultimately faced legal judgment.
According to Chinese media Shanxi Morning Post and Hong Kong media South China Morning Post on the 20th, a woman surnamed A from Shanxi province was sentenced to five years in prison for fraud in December 2020. However, she did not serve her time properly and has postponed her sentence over the past four years by becoming pregnant and giving birth three times with a man.
According to Chinese law, patients with severe illnesses, pregnant women, or women caring for infants can serve their sentences in the form of community correction services at hospitals or their homes instead of in prison. However, those sentenced must submit health checks or pregnancy certificates every three months and undergo regular inspections by the prosecution and correction authorities.
In May, during the inspection process, it was revealed that A was not living with her third child, who she had previously given birth to, and that the child's household registration was registered under her sister-in-law's name. She was already divorced, and it was found that the first and second children were living with her ex-husband, while the third child was entrusted to her ex-husband's sister.
The prosecution decided to re-incarcerate A immediately, concluding that she had misused pregnancy and childbirth as a means to evade her sentence.
However, taking into account that her remaining sentence is less than one year, she was allowed to serve the remaining time in a detention center instead of a prison.
This incident has also become a hot topic online in China. Internet users have reacted, saying, "It is more shocking that she could get pregnant whenever she wanted," "It's unfortunate that the three children were born simply as a means for their mother to avoid incarceration," and "It's surprising that this went undiscovered for so long."