A Tennessee couple is facing charges in connection with a bid to sell a five-month-old baby on Craigslist.
According to an investigation by the Elizabethton Police Department, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, undercover officers responded to an ad on Craigslist and were, according to Greene County Sheriff Pat Hankins, given a price to buy a child.
Police say an officer met with two people at a dollar store, roughly 120 kilometres from Knoxville and exchanged the baby for $3,000, according to a news release.
Speaking with the Greenville Sun, Sheriff Pat Hankins said he has never encountered a human trafficking case like this in his 34-year career in law enforcement.
“Can you believe this? We bought a baby,” said Hankin. “It makes my heart drop.”
WATCH: Woman arrested after trying to buy her daughter a baby on Craigslist.
John David Cain, 26 and Deanna Lynn Greer, 37 have been charged with aggravated child abuse and aggravated child neglect or endangerment.
Both Greer and Cain were taken into custody and are currently being held on a $150,000 bond. They are due back in court on April 7 for a preliminary hearing.
The baby and a second child of the couple are in the custody of the U.S Department of Child Services.