Four people have been detained by local police in Ningling county, Henan province, for allegedly being involved in selling infant babies, the local health authorities said on Friday.

The Ningling health commission said in a post that it has received reports from netizens that people working in the Ningling People's Hospital have been accused of selling babies.

The county has launched a joint investigation into the allegations.

Police have detained four people, and local disciplinary and inspection authorities have launched an investigation. Authorities will accelerate their investigation and hold people responsible according to law and regulations.

According to a Weibo post issued by a netizen named Shangguan Zhengyi on Friday, an emergency response driver surnamed Wang for the Ningling People's Hospital has conspired with a former director of the hospital's obstetric department to sell female babies to multiple local villagers since 2011.

The babies are now two to 13 years old and have obtained birth certificates from the local hospital, the post said.