Baby Gammy’s mother suspected of involvement in surrogacy business

SUSPICION has emerged that Baby Gammy’s surrogate mother was involved in the surrogacy business as an agent, or was setting up an agency.

SUSPICION has emerged that Baby Gammy’s surrogate mother was involved in the surrogacy business as an agent herself, or was in the process of setting up an agency.

Food vendor Pattaramon Janbua, 21, has been widely praised — including by Immigration Minister Scott Morrison — for her decision to keep now seven-month-old Gammy, after she claimed the Down syndrome infant boy had been abandoned by his Australian biological parents.

She claims she refused to abort the boy when his condition was diagnosed in utero.

Police are already investigating Ms Pattaramon’s role as birth mother in the scandal, but Thai Health Ministry general secretary Samphan Komrit said yesterday: “If it is found she is involved (as an agent) that will be investigated.”

Questions about Ms Pattaramon’s recent past were raised this week by a Thai newspaper, which reported what it claimed were postings on her Facebook page on May 16 and April 25, several months after Gammy’s birth.

The first message appears to call for sperm or egg donors, specifying age, height, weight, and blood type and offering between 20,000 baht and 50,000 baht cash ($670-$1670) for the genetic material, according to Kom Chad Luek newspaper. There was a conversation on the page apparently between Ms Pattaramon and a potential donor. The second Facebook message said: “We are looking for many surrogate mothers, in and out of Bangkok. If you are interested, please leave your message.”

The message asked for details of potential mothers’ names, blood type, nationality, date of birth, height, weight and other physical details, as well as education and hobbies. One reply was from a 17-year-old, who was asked to give details to be forwarded to a “client”, Kom Chad Luek reported.

Those two messages, if they were genuine, have since been deleted from Ms Pattaramon’s Facebook page.

However, The Australian has found on Facebook what appears to be a page section under construction by her husband, Uan Janbua, under the pseudonym (in Thai) Bat Cave Thamen Team.

Both Ms Pattaramon’s page and Bat Cave have photos of the couple and their marriage certificate.

The husband’s page has a collage of photographs of pregnant Western women and a message: “Surrogate mother, a job with attractive pay.”

Ms Pattaramon could not be found yesterday by journalists in Sriracha, east of Bangkok, where she usually works as a street food vendor.

Gammy is still in Samitivej Sriracha private hospital, being treated for pneumonia.

The hospital told reporters yesterday she was not there.