Sperm donor who used fake names to father up to 60 children is exposed after parents at an LGBTQI community event realised their kids all looked the same
- Sperm donor used fake names to father 60 kids
- He met many through casual channels like online forums
- Professionals in the industry are calling for more regulations
Parents wondering why their children all looked remarkably similar at a community barbecue event have uncovered a sperm donor who used fake names to father more than 60 children.
The man, whose identity has not been publicly revealed, used four different aliases to donate sperm to members of the Australian LGBTQI community who made the shocking discovery at a recent new parents get-together.
The stunned group of parents, some of whom met the man through informal channels, then began calling around local IVF facilities to see if the same man had been doing the rounds at clinics.
A sperm donor allegedly used fake names to father more than 60 children to Australians in return for cash and trips
‘The reason he was discovered is because he wasn’t fully Caucasian,’ IVF clinic Fertility First’s Dr Anne Clark told News Corp.
Dr Clark said he had been to Fertility First and they had used him only once.
But the man was offering his services through multiple methods – many unofficial and unregulated, such as Facebook groups.
Dr Clark said she has raised the man’s case with government but they have so far not been much help.
‘We know he got gifts, holidays – all a complete criminal offence,’ Dr Clark said.
It is illegal in Australia to pay or give gifts to obtain any human tissue, with hefty jail sentences of up to 15 years for the offence.
Despite all this, informal donations are booming thanks to online forums springing up offering to connect desperate wannabe parents with willing donors.
Two Facebook pages, Sperm Donation Australia and Australian Backpackers Seeking Sperm Donation, are filled with posts reading like back page classified ads – the end result to bring a child into the world.
‘Hey all. Looking for an AI (artificial insemination) donor no co-parent. I’m a 19-year-old single woman, I have my own house, a job and business,’ one post reads.
‘I have everything I need to do this process just need a willing donor to help.’
On the backpacker page, other posts offer donations, some specifying by natural means, from people visiting the country for a few weeks on holiday.
One woman on a Facebook group for sperm donors didn’t appear too concerned with the identity of the donor
One page is dedicated to backpackers looking to donate while they are visiting the country
Another post from a 19-year-old looking for a donor through unofficial channels
Donor Conceived Australia national director Aimee Shackleton said there was little regard for the effects such a decision would have on the child.
She said when the child is older they may want to know both their biological parents or connect with their siblings, of which there could be dozens.
‘People talk about meeting up in a car park or hotel and passing over a fresh sample for immediate use… our life ought to begin with dignity, and not as a process of some unregulated anonymous transaction,’ she said.
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