Chinese women who came to California to have their babies have said they feel like victims after a federal crackdown.
Investigators raided more than 20 maternity hotels two weeks ago, with several apartment complexes in Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties allegedly serving such a role.
Some women, who did not want to be identified, said the raids were terrifying, and are distraught they are forced to stay in the United States as witnesses while prosecutors build a case against at least three birthing tourism companies
One of the women said she was "really scared" when agents swarmed their Rancho Cucamonga apartment
"When we came here, we had no idea it would turn out like this," another added.
They claim they were kicked out of the birthing center by organizers after the early morning raid two weeks ago, and have been left without money for rent, food or healthcare for themselves and their newborns.
None of the women wanted to talk about why they wanted to have their babies in the United States, though they said they do not believe they did anything wrong when they signed up for the services.
U.S. & World
Investigators claim the organizers earned millions from women willing to pay for U.S. born babies.
The crackdown on three alleged maternity tourism rings may be the biggest yet by federal homeland security agents who say that, while pregnant women may travel to the United States, they cannot lie about the purpose of their trip when applying for a visa.
Birth tourism has been reported from a range of countries, but authorities say the most recent cases in California have catered to wealthy Chinese amid a boom in tourism from mainland China. It is unclear how many women travel to the United States for maternity tourism.
