Parents demand paternity tests after sperm bank boss 'used own samples' on women seeking IVF

Women feel 'like they were raped' by Jan Karbaat, who has now died

Jon Sharman
Saturday 13 May 2017 15:20 BST
Comments
Women and children are going to court for permission to carry out paternity tests
Women and children are going to court for permission to carry out paternity tests

A sperm bank boss used his own samples to impregnate women through IVF treatment, it has been claimed.

Parents and children are now going to court to ask for DNA tests on Jan Karbaat, who ran the Bijdorp clinic near Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

Mr Karbaat died last month aged 89.

Women who used the medical centre claimed they have noticed their children have similar features to Mr Karbaat and that features such as eye colour do not match their official donors' profiles, the Daily Telegraph reported.

One even said he had admitted the practice, boasting to her of his good health and intelligence, and claiming he told her it was a noble thing to do. “I see at home how my son's life has been affected. He was so angry when Karbaat died, and that he was taking this to his grave,” she said.

Their lawyer, Tim Bueters, told Dutch media the women felt “like they were raped by Karbaat”, who reportedly told them he was obtaining “fresh seed” from a room adjacent to where insemination took place.

Petitioning a court for the right to carry out DNA testing on Mr Karbaat, he said: “It's a fundamental right to know where you came from.”

Lisette de Haan, for Mr Karbaat's family, said there was “not the slightest evidence” to support the women's claims. She asked that the family's privacy be respected.

Authorities have already seized one of his toothbrushes and a nasal trimmer.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in