A criminal appeals court in Fez has handed down harsher sentences in the case of a dismantled infant trafficking network, increasing penalties for several defendants, including the main suspect and hospital staff.
The court increased the prison term for the primary defendant from 3 to 4 years after convicting her of human trafficking, fraud, threats, willfully concealing a child’s identity, and complicity in forging medical certificates.
A private security guard at El Ghassani Hospital also saw his sentence rise from 3 to 5 years following a reclassification of the charges against him. Another defendant, initially sentenced to 4 months, had his penalty increased to 3 years.
The first-instance ruling was upheld for several other defendants. The two daughters of the main suspect each received 1-year prison sentences, while her son’s wife and two other individuals, including a doctor, were sentenced to 4 months in prison. Another doctor, the only defendant out on bail during the proceedings, received a 2-month prison sentence.
The network was dismantled in February after weeks of wiretapping, which revealed incriminating conversations among the main suspects and confirmed their roles in infant trafficking and falsifying medical documents.
The case involved 35 accused individuals, including medical professionals and hospital staff, and has sparked widespread public concern over the integrity of healthcare institutions.
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