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Los Angeles - Federal agents raided about 20 Southern California locations on Tuesday suspected of involvement in "maternity tourism" schemes providing travel, lodging and medical care to pregnant foreign women seeking to give birth in the United States, immigration officials said.
Authorities say the so-called maternity hotels targeted in the sweep catered largely to wealthy women from China who paid $15 000 to $80 000, depending on services offered, in hopes of obtaining US citizenship for their children.
The locations searched included three apartment complexes - one each in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties - suspected of housing foreign clients, according to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, or ICE.
