Government authorities have detained two individuals accused of selling an eight-day-old infant online for 90,000 pesos ($1,700), officials said on Tuesday.

The suspects, the baby’s mother and an intermediary, were captured during a sting operation at a church in Dasmariñas, Cavite, according to Rex Gatchalian, Secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

The DSWD and the Philippine National Police’s Women and Children Protection Center have been tracking unauthorized adoptions on social media platforms like Facebook, where babies are listed for adoption, Gatchalian told reporters.

“Adoptions that bypass the National Authority for Child Care’s regulations are illegal,” Gatchalian said, noting that approximately 20 to 40 social media pages involved in the illicit trade of infants have been monitored.

“The spread of this practice is alarming and constitutes a harsh form of child exploitation,” he added, emphasizing that poverty does not justify the sale of children.

Janella Estrada, DSWD Undersecretary, announced reforms to simplify and reduce the cost of legal adoption, shortening the process to six to nine months with faster matching and fewer requirements.

The arrested individuals are currently detained at Camp Crame and have undergone inquest proceedings, stated PCol. Renato Mercado of the PNP Women and Children Protection Center.