For a couple desperate to have a child a surrogate like Samantha Brown must have seemed like an angel.
The British couple Benita Cutter, 49, and Mark Cutter, 32 had tried for four years to have their own baby but had finally turned to surrogacy.
In the UK, where surrogate agreements are allowed women like Samantha Brown enter into such arrangements with an agreed financial compensation in return for carrying a couple’s child.
For many like the Cutters it is a dream come true.
When they found Samantha Brown Benita and Mark, thrilled to finally have the chance for their own baby, travelled to Scotland where they stayed at Brown’s home in Tain in the Highlands.
According to The Mirror for three days Mr Cutter provided a daily sample of his sperm and Brown and her then partner claimed to be using it to artificially inseminate her.
The agreement they drew up involved the couple agreeing to reimburse Brown for her expenses and other costs.
The pregnancy was a success and over the months Brown sent them ultrasound images of their child, detailed the baby’s sex and updated them on hospital check-ups and visits to ante-natal classes.
In all they paid £8,307.00 ( $A17,000) into her bank account. They happily paid for maternity wear for Brown as she grew bigger with the pregnancy, baby clothes for when their little boy was born, travel expenses and when Brown suffered complications and had to leave her job due to the pregnancy they even paid out for that.
But their happiness turned to despair when they received the most heartbreaking of messages from Brown’s partner.
Samantha had been in a car crash and was in an induced coma. Their unborn son had not survived.
When Brown came out of the “coma” she even send the Cutters an image of the baby she claimed was taken shortly after it’s death on a mobile phone.
But the couple were perplexed, reports The Sun, they thought that the newborn in the image looked asleep, rather than dead, and there was no sign of hospital issue blankets in the photo.
According to court reports they then contacted the hospital Brown was supposed to be in and heard the heart stopping news that they had no record of her.
This week at Inverness Sheriff court Brown admitted the fraud.
She was initially charged with girlfriend Karen Galashan, 44, but the charges against the other woman were dropped reports The Sun.
Prosecutor Roderick Urquhart said of the Cutters “Everything else had been tried by the couple and surrogacy was their last option. It appears they were desperate for a child and perhaps consequently were a little gullible.”
“They came into contact with Brown via an advert they had placed on the internet seeking the assistance of a surrogate. Brown offered her services and in due course the Cutters travelled to Tain where they met both Brown and her then partner.
“As the pregnancy progressed the Cutters were sent what purported to be scan images of the unborn child and were told of Brown’s visits to antenatal classes et cetera.
“It was established that all the Cutters had been told was false. Brown had never been pregnant; she had not attended any antenatal classes; had not been in a car crash; had not delivered a dead child; had not lost any wages; and had not incurred the expenses she had claimed and obtained from the Cutters.
“It would appear that the financial loss incurred by the Cutters paled almost into insignificance compared with the heartbreak, anguish and despair they suffered when they realised not only that they were not to become parents, but that they had been the victims of a calculated and callous fraud.”
Brown who already in jail after she admitted shooting her neighbour in the head with an air rifle in a drunken row about seagulls last year will stay behind bars.
The case was deferred until February 12.
Top Comments
The thing is that I understand how much the information is important for people who just try to start their way of surrogacy. When I was frustrated and disappointed I needed so much help and support from the experienced couples. It is not a
problem to find the information in internet. But it is a real problem to settle this information. It is a real problem to separate the truth from the advertisement. Also it is very rarely when you can find negative information about clinic in internet. When I was looking for some clinics, I found just adds. Then I started to communicate on the forums. It was very useful, cause real experienced couples tried to help. I was very emotional and I couldn’t
control myself. It was seemed like the solution of my problems was so far away from me. The cost of the programs were impossible for me. We had not so much money. And I thought it was so unfair that I should not spend this money directly for the child. But I made a lot of the mistakes during my surrogacy
journey(( I spent a lot of time for visiting inappropriate countries. And I spent a lot of money for wrong choices. First of all I would like to share my diagnosis. I have infertile uterus. So from the young age I was ready to deal with infertility. But when I fell in love I started to feel the parental feelings. It was unbearable. I understood that I can’t have children, but I couldn’t shut up my heart. My husband understood what he did when he took me as
a wife. But I was changed. I was always nervous. I was crying very often. I stopped communicating with our friends who had children or with those who were pregnant. My hubby noticed that something wrong happened with me. When I told him the truth, he tried to calm me down and told that he would do everything to
make me a mother. He spent time looking for the solution. And once he told me that the only solution for us is surrogacy. If everything is ok with my eggs, it was possible to make me a biological mother. We visited doctor and made the whole medical examination. We were so happy to know that I can be biological mother. From that moment we started to fight for our child. The way was not simple. It would be so good if somebody could help me and protect from the mistakes. But we were alone in that fighting. I just want to tell if I can help somebody with good advice or support, I would be very happy to do it.
Sociopathic, deranged, acam artist.