Sydney - The Australian father of the Thai surrogate baby Gammy, at the centre of a bitter dispute, is a convicted child sex offender, Australia media reported Tuesday.
Surrogate mother Pattharamon Jhanbua plays with Down's Syndrome baby Gammy, now the centre of several major controversies, the latest of which is that the baby's Australian father is a convicted child sex abuser. (AFP photo)
Court documents show the Australian father of Thai surrogate baby Gammy was convicted twice on charges of sexually abusing at least three girls in the 1990s, Australian media reports said.
The still unidentified man was jailed for three years for molesting two girls under 10 and later convicted and sentenced on charges of indecency involving a 13-year-old, The Australian newspaper said.
After hearing the news, the Thai surrogate mother said that she wants his twin sister returned to her.
"I am in shock after hearing this story," said the surrogate mother of the babies, Pattharamon Janbua of Sri Racha, in an interview with Australian media.
"I need help from anyone who can bring my girl back to me as soon as possible," she said. This news makes me sick. I am worried about my baby girl."
The wife of the father and paedophile convict defended him. "He is a good man - people make mistakes - that doesn't mean he is a bad person forever," said the woman, who also has not yet been identified.
Ms Pattharamon, a Thai food vendor, last week accused the anonymous couple of abandoning one of the twins she gave birth to in a commercial surrogacy deal at the end of last year.
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She said they left Gammy, who has Down's Syndrome and a heart defect, behind when they returned home to Western Australia with his healthy sister.
The couple on Monday denied her claim and said the Thai doctor had not informed them of the existence of the boy. Pattharamon, 21, then threatened to sue them.
The case sparked outrage and calls for reforms to Australia's surrogacy laws.
An Australian charity has raised around 200,000 Australian dollars (186,500 US dollars) to cover the medical expenses of the infant who was admitted to Bangkok hospital with a lung infection.
Australia's Immigration Minister Scott Morrison was quoted in media reports Monday saying the legalities in international surrogacy were "very, very, very murky".
"Sure, there are lots of Australians who are desperate to be parents but that can never, I think, sanction what we have just seen here," Morrison said.