Civil registry officials who were part of the ring would then help carry out the necessary paperwork. The swoop was the result of an investigation that began in May and involved extensive wiretapping. The alleged ringleader was a model Cinthia Tello, whose partner, retired General Raul Becerra, was director of Peru’s National Police in 2010.
Tello, who was also a beauty pageant producer in Arequipa, “is the leader -- she would receive babies in her house, before handing it over to the adopter,” prosecutor Miriam Hernandez told reporters. Among those arrested were a gynecologist and a pediatrician, as well as three women whose job it was to contact pregnant women who were seeking abortions. Peru has one of the strictest set of laws governing abortion in South America, with the procedure only legal in cases where a pregnancy presents a danger to the life of the mother.
