A Chinese man has been arrested for selling his two-year-old son after winning custody from his ex-wife and using the proceeds to go travelling with his new love.

The suspect, identified by his surname Xie, who comes from the Chinese province of Zhejiang, was given custody of his son after divorcing his wife.

His wife was awarded custody of their daughter and when the dad took the child away, he left the boy nicknamed Jiajia in his brother Lin’s care in the city of Huzhou as he needed to work in another area.

When he later turned up, he took the son away from his family telling them and other relatives that the boy’s mother wanted to see him.

The brother who had grown attached to the boy and wanted to make sure he was okay later found out when he checked that Jiajia never arrived at his mother’s home, and asked Xie about it.

When his brother declined to answer, worried Lin reported the incident to the police on 22nd April.

After an investigation, the local police said they discovered that Jiajia was sold to a couple without children in the city of Changsu in Jiangsu Province for CNY 158,000 (GBP 17,548).

Xie allegedly used the cash to take his new wife travelling and took photos of the stack of banknotes to show off to pals.

The police returned Jiajia to his uncle’s care as the dad and the couple that purchased the boy being investigated over the alleged sale.

Chinese media said Xie previously gave away two of his daughters from a previous marriage because he was in dire financial straits.

The investigation continues.