Thai court gives Japanese man custody of 13 surrogate kids

20/2/2018 19:22

        A Thai court on Tuesday granted legal custody of 13 babies carried by surrogate mothers to a Japanese millionaire who is their biological father, reviving a bizarre tale that captured tabloid headlines four years ago.
        
        Mitsutoki Shigeta's case raised eyebrows in 2014 when police raided a Bangkok condominium and found nine babies and nine nannies living in unfurnished rooms. It was determined that Shigeta had fathered the children using Thai surrogate mothers. The case helped usher in a Thai law prohibiting commercial surrogacy for foreign clients.
        
        On Tuesday, Bangkok's Central Juvenile and Family Court gave Shigeta sole legal custody of the children, saying he had showed plans to care for the children and is financially stable. It also noted that the children were born before the new law, and that the surrogate mothers had signed documents waiving their custody rights.