Article: Mexican mother sued adoption agency allegedly involved in baby smuggling.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

LAREDO, Texas _ An adoption agency worker accused of running an international baby-buying scheme was sued two years ago by a young Mexican mother who said she was threatened with arrest when she tried to change her mind about giving up her newborn.

The mother, Benita Facundo Leija of Monterrey, Mexico, said in a lawsuit filed in Webb County court that she was paid $500 for turning her child over to Maria Dolores Bondoc of Laredo.

Facundo, who was 17 at the time, was one of 12 pregnant women from Mexico who had been smuggled into the United States to hand over their babies to Bondoc for adoption, according to the lawsuit.

Her suit, which is ...

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