MOSCOW, August 20 (RAPSI) – The Moscow City Court has upheld detention of CEO of the European Surrogacy Center Vladislav Melnikov in a case over trafficking of surrogate mothers’ children, RAPSI has learnt in the court’s press service.

The man will stay detained until September 14.

Earlier, the court upheld detention of three other defendants Roman Yamashev, Kirill Anisimov and Taras Ashitkov.

In total, seven people involved in the case are in detention. One more accused woman is under house arrest.

In January, law enforcement found a body of a dead newborn boy in a flat in the Moscow Region’s town of Odintsovo. There were also three other kids there along with a nurse. Investigators believe surrogate mothers gave birth to the children to transfer them later to foreign parents.

However, defense lawyers believe that investigators failed to discover cause-effect links between actions’ of the doctors and the baby’s death. Moreover, they state that current legislation does not prohibit citizens to become parents using vitro fertilization and surrogate services.