JASON CARNEY: 2ND MILK BOSS ARRESTED IN UNITED STATES




GOLDEN MATONGA


Jason Carney, the founder of the controversial Malawi registered NGO exposed by PIJ for exploiting Malawi children has been arrested by authorities in the US.


The specific charges against Carney, whose organization has been the subject of two major PIJ investigations around the use of its finances and illegal adoptions in Malawi, are yet to be released.


However, as previously reported by Platform for Investigative Journalism (PIJ), Carney has been under criminal investigation for over a year. A PIJ investigation, based on documents obtained by police in the US and from Malawi’s NGO Authority (NGORA) through an Access to Information (ATI) request, interviews with former employees, and open sources, shows the couple, through the organisation, raised a total of $2,371,314 (some MK4.1 billion) between 2016 and 2023 donations.


In April last year, the role of organisation and Carney in unethical adoptions became a huge business. At the core of exposed unethical behavior included aggressive marketing tactics that included over-exposing the suffering of babies, language that bordered on sales pitches, and coercion of parents to give away their infants and babies, among others.


A previous PIJ investigation revealed Carney was at the centre of illegal child adoptions in Malawi. Each adoption reported by PIJ then, comes with a price tag of around USD 20 700 (MK21.2m) and the investigation estimated adoptions worth $5.7 billion (MK5.8 trillion) were facilitated between 2006 and 2022. Many were likely to have taken place and were not reviewed by the PIJ.


PIJ further revealed that the “quick adoption” process promised by agents is code for a system where government officials can by-pass legal issues as they too cash in on innocent children, poor Malawian families who are enticed to give up children for adoption with promises of lucrative payment are not always made aware that they will no longer have any access to their child after adoption. 

Adopted children, between the range of two weeks old and 17 years old, are heading mostly to Brazil and then the United States. 


A former 2nd Milk employee and former donor to the organization separately welcomed the arrest in separate interviews. 


Lawyers representing Carney could not be immediately reached for comment.


A mugshot of Carney, 46, was released on 13th January at 4.50AM with detainee 1D number 34413 and identifies the arresting agency as United States Marshals Services (USMS). According to information on the internet, the USMS is primarily focussed on protecting courts and the judiciary but also hunts down fugitives from justice. It is unclear if  Carney was on the run. 

The arrest is the latest ramification following the investigation into Carney. The US government last year canceled accreditation to US-registered Children of All Nations which was the subject of an investigation by PIJ that exposed how the organization exploited poor Malawi children by marketing them for expensive adoptions as if they were products.


In a statement released on 19th April 2024, the US State Department through the Intercountry Adoption Accreditation and Maintenance Entity (IAAME) office said it had canceled the accreditation of Children of All Nations for failing to maintain substantial compliance with accreditation standards effective April 18, 2024.



“As a result of this cancellation, Children of All Nations must immediately cease to provide adoption services in connection with intercountry adoption cases. If you have an open case with Children of All Nations, please contact them directly to find out how the cancellation will affect your case. Children of All Nations is required to transfer its cases to another accredited provider. In addition, the agency must issue any reimbursements or refunds due to clients in accordance with 22 CFR 96.33(e) and 96.40(h),” reads the statement.


The statement added that families working with Children of All Nations should contact them directly with questions about case or record transfer. 

“We also encourage families to review the information published by IAAME or CEAS about selecting a primary provider/adoption service provider and the accreditation/approval requirements,” added the statement.


A former associate of Carney said he was not surprised by the US government’s action.


“I advised him and the board I would never be involved in their adoptions because it felt dirty and wrong.  But Malawi had or held to no real ‘laws’ and let it happen,” said the associate.


He called upon Malawian authorities to also take action on the matter.


“The fact he’s been allowed to visit Malawi still and act ‘at-will’ after your great story was published, to me, is a bigger story for Malawi also. Who allowed it and why..?  Who was he close to at the highest levels?  What role did they play in supporting him that may have intimidated the local staff (and may still) into silence for fear of losing their jobs or worse..?  I desire that once this is done is that all players should be held to the highest account and that Hague Convention rules do adoptions in ALL countries or better..  because what he and others do IS child trafficking, extortion, and corruption in God’s name,” said the associate.


READ MORE:

SOUR MILK: HOW AN AMERICAN CHRISTIAN NGO EXPLOITED MALAWIAN’S CHILDREN TO FUND FOUNDERS’ LAVISH LIFESTYLES

EXPORTING MALAWI BABIES

BITTER GOODBYES: US PARTNERS, NGO BOSS FIGHT OVER CLOSURE

HELL AT CHILDREN’S HAVEN



This article was produced by the Platform for Investigative Journalism, a non profit public interest centre for investigative journalism. 



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Golden Matonga, a journalist based in Lilongwe. He is a member of the International Consortium for Investigative Journalism (ICIJ) and his work has appeared in the New York Times, Financial Times, The Economist, Mail&Guardian, among others. Email:[email protected] X:@GoldenMatonga 

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