A 21-year-old woman from Texas attempted to sell her newborn baby to the highest bidder on Facebook, requesting a minimum of $150 up front before she even went into labor.
Juniper Bryson was arrested last week and charged with one count of felony sale or purchase of a child. On September 23rd, the Houston Police Department received a report stating that Juniper was trying to sell her unborn baby on Facebook.
The day before, on September 22nd, she had posted in a Facebook group called “Birthing Mothers Looking for Adoptive Parents,” stating, “I’m in Houston, Texas, but willing to travel if we can arrange that. I do have a lot of pain and contractions, so it needs to be soon.”
She reportedly also contacted a family member, asking if they knew of anyone looking to adopt a child. Juniper told the family member that her baby would test positive for drugs. The family member then posted on Facebook that a relative was seeking adoptive parents to prevent the baby from going into foster care. Allegedly, several people responded to that post.
The relative informed authorities that after her post, Juniper began insisting that anyone wanting to adopt the baby would need to compensate her. The relative questioned, “What do you mean by ‘compensate’? Like, pay you?” and warned her that it was illegal and considered human trafficking. Juniper reportedly replied that it was surrogacy and claimed she only needed enough money to move into an apartment, get a job, and support her daughter, or at least a cheap car down payment to do food delivery jobs.
The relative eventually stopped trying to help after posting about Juniper’s demand for money on Facebook.
On September 24th, the relative told police that Juniper was at the hospital with the baby and was “waiting on the highest bidder.” Authorities searched Juniper’s phone and found multiple conversations with people responding to her relative’s adoption post. In one exchange, she was communicating with a couple traveling from Louisiana to be with her at the hospital. Juniper told them she wouldn’t wait to be paid until after the birth, requesting a minimum of $150 upfront, after the couple had already sent her money for a meal. She sent them a photo of the meal she wanted, and they sent her $25 via Apple Pay to complete the order.
The hopeful adoptive parents, three and a half hours into their trip from Louisiana to Texas, grew suspicious when Juniper requested the $150 upfront again. When they suggested proceeding with an attorney, she refused, demanded the $150 once more, and eventually blocked them, saying, “If my baby isn’t worth $200, then screw you.”
Authorities discovered that she had discussed compensation for her child with at least seven different people.
Juniper is currently being held on a $30,000 bond in the Harris County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on November 7th. Details about the baby remain unavailable, but according to reports, the child is in the care of the Department of Family Services.
