How to avoid jail? Get pregnant: Woman gives birth thrice in 4 years to skip prison, leaves social media shocked

A Chinese woman has avoided jail for years by repeatedly becoming pregnant. The woman, using the name Chen Hong, was sentenced to five years for fraud in Shanxi in December 2020. However, she never actually served time.

Instead, she gave birth to three children with one man over four years. Under Chinese law, women who are pregnant or nursing can serve their sentence outside prison. It is usually done at home or in a hospital, with supervision by local authorities.

They must provide medical or pregnancy reports every three months, and inspections are carried out regularly. The South China Morning Post reported that, after years of evasion, Chen had finally been brought to justice.

In May 2025, an inspection showed that, though she had just delivered her third baby, the child did not live with her. Records revealed the child was registered under her former husband’s sister, making it legally hers.

Chen later admitted she had divorced. Her first two children were with her ex-husband. And, the third was given to his sister, the publication added.

Authorities decided she had misused pregnancy as an excuse to escape jail. With less than a year left, she was sent to a detention centre to finish her sentence.

Social media users reacted to this bizarre incident.

“I was more shocked that she could get pregnant when she wanted,” SCMP quoted one of them as saying.

“Judging from my own experience, it is easier to get pregnant right after giving birth,” observed another.

Another user commented, “I pity the three children who were born only because their mother wanted to escape prison.”

Chen Hong not the only woman to do this

Chen Hong is not the first woman to apply this strategy to avoid her jail term. A Chinese woman named Zeng avoided prison for ten years by becoming pregnant again and again.

She was sentenced to life imprisonment for corruption in 2005 but escaped jail because she was pregnant at the time. After the probation decision, she even went for an abortion.

From 2006 onwards, Zeng reported 14 pregnancies in ten years. One was false while 13 were genuine, according to People’s Daily Online.

This cycle allowed her to delay serving her sentence for a decade. Her unusual tactic finally came to an end when the court sent her to prison in 2015.