A gang of seven people have been tried in a court in central China's Henan Province for allegedly trafficking in nine boys, some as young as two, in seven months.

Four members of the accused gang were of the same family, including Ye Zengxi, 55, his younger brother Ye Xiaolin, his son Ye Xinfan and daughter-in-law Li Yalin.

The other three defendants -- Lu Zhenxin, Qin Yunrong and Cao Jiang -- helped find buyers in Henan and neighboring Shandong Province, according to the Intermediate People's Court of Nanyang City.

The case also involved the Ye brothers' 11-year-old nephew, who had the role of luring children away from their parents with toys or food and then alerting his uncles to take them away.

From last April to December, nine boys aged from two to seven years were reported missing in Xichuan County and Xixia County in Nanyang City.

The court said that eight of the nine boys were sold for 12,000 yuan (1,600 U.S. dollars) to 33,000 yuan each, an amount equal to two years' income for an average rural household in the densely-populated agricultural province.

All the children, including the one who had not been sold, were rescued on Jan. 2 and sent back to their parents the next day.

The seven defendants all pleaded guilty; a verdict would be handed down later, the court said.

Child abductors face a maximum death penalty in China.

(Xinhua News Agency March 12, 2008)