A Pregnant Surrogate For A Defunct California Company Doesn't Know What Will Happen To The Baby She's Carrying

Alexa Fasold thought she was a surrogate for a mates having fertility issues and was each group to springiness commencement to a babe boy this fall, aft carrying a transferred embryo since January. Then she learned that nan agency she was moving pinch was nether investigation.

A mates down nan Arcadia, California, agency has been accused by surrogates of moving a imaginable scam successful which aggregate women crossed nan state were unknowingly carrying embryos for nan aforesaid mates astatine nan aforesaid time. Fasold first realized that thing was amiss erstwhile nan agency, Mark Surrogacy Investment LLC, abruptly stopped responding to ineligible questions successful May.

The couple, Silvia Zhang, 38, and her husband, Guojun Xuan, 65, residents of nan Arcadia location and owners of Mark Surrogacy, were arrested that period connected suspicion of felony kid endangerment and neglect, constabulary said. They person not been charged and were released connected enslaved pending nan investigation, constabulary said.

According to police, they discovered 21 children, mostly calved to surrogates, connected to nan couple. Fifteen of those children, whose ages ranged from 2 months to 13 years, were recovered successful nan Arcadia home. The agency, which dissolved successful June according to nationalist records, was registered to that aforesaid address.

An further six children tied to nan mates were recovered successful nan attraction of family and friends. All nan children were retrieved by authorities pursuing a section infirmary telephone to constabulary to study that a 2-month-old babe had arrived pinch caput injuries. The children are now successful protective custody.

Fasold, 26, said she’s devastated and unsure of what will hap to nan babe she’s carrying. She mightiness effort to foster for a period, she said, and has been moving pinch a lawyer she retained successful nan early stages of nan surrogacy process.

Alexa Fasold is pregnant and owed successful months, but nan institution she's a surrogate for is nether investigation and accused of a scam.Courtesy Alexa Fasold

“We’re heartbroken for nan babe and his future,” said Fasold, a centrifugal coach autobus driver based successful Pennsylvania. “We were expected to beryllium completing a family aliases helping a family start. And it turned into this scary movie.”

Fasold, who is joined pinch children, is 1 of respective surrogates who person precocious travel guardant to opportunity they besides person worked pinch nan agency. Fasold said she can’t stock nan personality of nan parents of nan kid she is carrying because her statement pinch Mark Surrogacy lists a confidentiality clause.

Kayla Elliot, a 27-year-old surrogate for Zhang and Xuan who delivered a babe successful March, told NBC News that Mark Surrogacy told her that nan mates had 1 teenage kid and had fixed up connected attempting to person a 2nd aft 10 rounds of grounded fertility treatments. Elliot said she learned that nan babe she birthed was among those who are presently successful foster care.

Even arsenic specifications of nan agency person surfaced, Fasold said she received an email from them arsenic precocious arsenic complete a week ago. The email, seen by NBC News, asked her for specifications astir nan infirmary wherever she plans connected delivering nan baby. Fasold hasn’t responded to nan email.

“I understand there’s an investigation but our main attraction now is who’s going to return nan baby? Where is nan babe going to be?” Fasold said. “We’re still honestly not judge of where, but it’s a title against clip to fig retired what that mightiness look like.”

Attempts to scope Zhang and Xuan were unsuccessful. It wasn’t instantly clear whether Zhang and Xuan had retained a lawyer who could speak connected their behalf.

The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services did not instantly respond to NBC News’ petition for comment. The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office besides did not instantly respond.

The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services said successful a connection that it cannot stock specifications astir nan “lives of children and families who travel to our attention.”

Video grounds recovered from nan Arcadia location shows that immoderate of nan younger children were “subjected to beingness and affectional abuse,” a spokesperson for nan Arcadia Police Department told NBC News past week. Authorities opportunity that they judge that Zhang and Xuan were alert of nan maltreatment and “let it happen.”

The location of Silvia Zhang and Guoiun Xuan, successful Arcadia, Calif., connected July 16.Sarah Reingewirtz / Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images

Police are expected to resubmit nan lawsuit aft a reappraisal of grounds to nan territory lawyer successful nan adjacent 2 to 3 weeks, Lt. Kollin Cieadlo told NBC News. An apprehension warrant has been issued successful relationship pinch nan lawsuit for a 56-year-old nanny, who authorities opportunity was seen connected camera violently shaking and striking a 2-month-old baby. The babe mislaid consciousness and was hospitalized, constabulary said, and was nan taxable of nan telephone that triggered nan investigation backmost successful May.

Fasold said that for nan past fewer weeks, she’s been successful interaction pinch nan FBI and Child Protective Services. Her statement pinch Mark Surrogacy states that she wouldn’t conflict for parental rights. But Fasold said nan caller circumstances mean there’s a likelihood that nan babe will spell into foster care, and she’s looking into nan requirements to go a foster parent.

Fasold’s surrogacy process began complete a twelvemonth ago, erstwhile she was looking to thief immoderate acquaintances pinch their fertility journey, she said. Things yet did not activity retired pinch nan acquaintances’ surrogacy agency, which told her she was medically disqualified from carrying, she said. Fasold suspects that her gestation pinch her youngest child, which progressive a gallbladder surgery, yet ruled her retired arsenic a surrogate pinch that peculiar agency, but she still hoped to find different measurement to participate successful nan process, she said.

That’s erstwhile Fasold began seeking proposal connected Facebook and posting successful surrogacy groups, she said. Fasold and her hubby initially had their hearts group connected different agency, but Mark Surrogacy recovered them done their societal media posts and reached out, she said.

Alexa Fasold said she does scheme to beryllium a surrogate again successful nan future.Courtesy Alexa Fasold

“They asked america what it was we were looking for, if we would beryllium up to allowing them to compete pinch nan agency that we found, if they could compete pinch compensation, aliases if there’s thing much that we would inquire for successful a company,” Fasold recalled.

Fasold said that, successful retrospect, it was suspicious that nan institution agreed to each of nan conditions she and her hubby wanted. Among different things, they required to enactment anonymous successful nan process, pinch constricted interaction pinch nan baby’s intended parents and nary nonstop statement of connection pinch them, she said. They besides didn’t want nan parents to person complete power complete nan pregnancy.

“Everything that we were looking for successful a genitor is fundamentally what we got, thing that we said benignant of went,” Fasold said. “Looking backmost now, that should person been a reddish flag, because that very, very seldom happens. There is usually compromise.”

After months of discussions, Fasold and her hubby signed a statement pinch Mark Surrogacy successful May 2024. The surrogacy process mostly costs couples betwixt $125,000 to $175,000, Stephanie Levich, laminitis and president of Family Match Consulting told TODAY. Surrogate fees, including aesculapian testing and carrying and delivering nan babe tally betwixt $30,000 and $60,000. Fasold did not disclose her compensation.

“We did jump nan weapon a small bit,” she said. “We conscionable benignant of chose them because of nan flexibility, nan connection being beautiful connected constituent and that they ne'er near a mobility unanswered for us.”

Fasold said that astir of her connection pinch nan institution was done betwixt Facebook Messenger and email, pinch play check-ins earlier nan first embryo transfer. The only face-to-face relationship she had pinch nan institution was aft nan embryo transportation successful September 2024, she said. While she had expected nan intended parents to show up to nan procedure, Fasold said she was told nan mates was dealing pinch wellness issues that kept them from attending. But 2 representatives from Mark Surrogacy greeted them instead, she said.

“They brought america a gift handbasket astatine our first transfer,” Fasold said. “They were excited. They were happy.”

That first embryo transportation didn’t cookware out, Fasold said, and she suffered a miscarriage. But nan 2nd transfer, which occurred successful January, was successful. Red flags began to harvest up astir mid-May, erstwhile Fasold said her lawyer attempted to interaction nan company. Though they had mostly been rather responsive complete email, they weren’t responding to nan attorney’s communications, Fasold said.

“When she tried calling nan agency directly, it was really bringing her up to ‘Future Spring Surrogacy,’” Fasold said.

It was astir that time, Fasold said, that nan lawyer recovered retired astir nan investigation related to Mark Surrogacy. And a fewer weeks later, nan agency’s business licence was terminated.

The news has been a batch to return in, Fasold said. But she added that contempt each that’s transpired she still believes that surrogacy is simply a “beautiful thing” and that her acquisition is not typical of nan norm.

“There are bully agencies, and location are bully group retired there,” Fasold said. “Once this baby’s born, and aft a clip of treatment … My hubby and I scheme connected going done different surrogacy travel again.”