Flushing daycare stabbing draws attention to Chinese ‘birth tourism’

A police officer stands guard at the house were five people were stabbed overnight is seen, Friday, Sept. 21, 2018, in New York. Police say five people, including three infants, were stabbed at an overnight day care center in New York City. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

By Evan Rosen

Elected officials are taking a closer look at the “birth tourism” industry after a Flushing nanny accused of stabbing three infants and two adults inside a daycare center for Chinese immigrants.

On September 21, Yu Fen Wang brutally stabbed three babies -- ages ranging from three days to one month old -- as well as a 63-year-old co-worker and a 31-year-old man inside a 161st Street house.

The crime scene was one of many in Queens and throughout the country that supports the booming business of “birth tourism.”

Many Chinese mothers -- who can afford it -- travel to the United States to give birth for the sole purpose of gaining citizenship for their child.

And while the practice is not illegal, the incident with Wang brings to light the need for more regulation in the industry.

“Right now we’re trying to figure out the best legislation to either crack down or license these businesses so the workers are properly vetted and their backgrounds captured,” said Assemblyman Ron Kim who represents the 40th District that includes Whitestone, Flushing, College .

Wang, 52, told The New York Daily News in a jailhouse interview that she didn’t see the babies as human beings, “but wolves.”

A Queens judge remanded Wang to Rikers Island and ordered her back in court on October 19 in Part N.