Kids being swapped from one family to another for cash. It's hard to believe such a thing could happen, but it does, often with kids going out of the proverbial frying pan and into the fire of abuse.
What's even more frightening, is that it's perfectly legal in Ohio.
Tonight at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Channel 3, The Investigator Tom Meyer talks to victims of this scheme and reveals how child swapping is becoming a lucrative trade for some "parents." Kids who have been swapped recall the exact moments they were abandoned by those they counted on most.
Victims like Miko, who was deceived by a sweet treat...
And Nora, who says her dad promised he'd be back for her soon.
For Nora, it wasn't just her dad who betrayed her. Even her mom was in on the act.
Miko wasn't the only child subjected to unimaginable abuse in her new "home." She said there were many other children there who were hidden from public agencies and forced to live in horrific conditions.
Both women managed to escape their rehoming nightmares and are trying to put those days behind them.But when they think about other children in similar situations, they know they can't stay silent.
Hear more about their stories and meet a local woman who was also passed from home to home throughout her childhood on our exclusive investigation tonight at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Channel 3.