Chinese teenager sells kidney to buy iPad 2

A Chinese teenager has reportedly sold one of his kidneys to buy an iPad 2. The launch of the iPad and iPhone in China has sparked scuffles outside stores, and people queued for hours to buy new models in the UK and the US.

But the case of a 17 year-old identified only as 'Zheng', who sold an organ to raise the cash for an Apple tablet, is a first.

"I wanted to buy an iPad 2, but I didn't have the money," the boy told Shenzhen TV, the Daily Telegraph reports.

"When I surfed the internet I found an advert posted online by [an] agent saying they were able to pay RMB20,000 [£1,885] to buy a kidney."

Zheng travelled to a hospital in northern China for the operation, and was discharged three days later. However, when he returned home with his new technology, his mother confronted him and reported the deal to the authorities.

"When he came back, he had a laptop and a new Apple handset," said his mother, identified as 'Miss Liu'. "I wanted to know how he had got so much money and he finally confessed that he had sold one of his kidneys."

Chinese police reported that the hospital has denied any knowledge of the operation, and that the agent who arranged the deal has since disappeared.