This must have come as quite the shock for the son of father and failed businessman Saud bin Nasser Al Shahry from Saudi Arabia, as he found himself on sale for £13 million on Facebook.

The dad claims he was financially stretched, as the local court ruled his debt-collecting firm illegal.  He asked for financial help and was denied because of being over the age of 35.  After all of this, for the sake of taking care of his wife and daughter, he claimed the only option was to auction his son on the social network, to offer “a decent life to his mother and sister rather than living in poverty.”

Since Saudi Arabia considers child trafficking an offense, some believe that this is merely a publicity stunt by an out-of-business businessman.  However, as the country has been continually blacklisted for the crime (year-on-year, including the US Department's 2011 report), and Al Shahry claims he is ready to go to court with "sales procedures," there is also a point to argue the likelihood of this story.  All we know thus far is the initial details, and the stipulation that Shahry is to know where a possible buyer of the child resides.

Source: Alsharq.com (Arabic)