Man could have fathered around 500 children

A Dutch musician is said to have fathered more than 500 children with his sperm donations. A court should now ban him from donating.

Munich – A sperm donation can help childless couples to start a family. But what if the donor turns out to be a compulsive sperm donor and the child may have hundreds of half-siblings? Many women who are suing a sperm donor are in this situation right now. Dutch musician Jonathan Jacob Meijer is said to have fathered hundreds of children. The indictment is intended to ensure that he is never allowed to donate again.

A few years ago, the Dutch gynecologists’ association NCOG is said to have warned about the man. He fathered at least 100 children in Holland alone. After it became known, he was blacklisted so that he could no longer donate sperm in Dutch clinics, reports the Dutch newspaper AD. That didn’t stop Meijer, however, instead he donated abroad and offered his donations via the internet, so it is estimated that he may have fathered over 500 children.

500 children from one donor: Men should never be allowed to give seeds again

The prosecutors accuse Meijer of having deceived women worldwide. “If I had known that he had already fathered more than 100 children, I would never have chosen him,” a recipient of his donation is said to have said in a statement, according to several media outlets. The purpose of the indictment is to ensure that Meijer is never allowed to donate sperm again. In addition, all clinics that received donations from the accused are to be determined. Existing donations are to be destroyed unless a woman has reserved a rehearsal as she already has a child by the accused.

Sperm donations of this magnitude raised concerns about possible incest, according to media reports, the lawyer for the Donorkind Foundation, Mark de Hek, is said to have said. The foundation is behind the lawsuit and accuses the defendant of breaking his agreements with the clinics. These stipulate that a maximum of 25 children should be fathered by one donor. According to the prosecution, the violation is dangerous for the physical and mental health of the donor children. In addition, it is often difficult for the children to cope with knowing that they have so many half-siblings.

In the Netherlands there was already a case in which a gynecologist fathered 17 children with his patients who knew nothing about it. (Kilian Baeuml)