A toddler has finally been reunited with his father after being sold more than 10 times by human traffickers.

Jiang Kehao, now 3 years old, went missing on July 9, 2010, from Xianju county in East China's Zhejiang province.

Police said his mother, Li Zhengxiu, who has mental health problems, was persuaded to hand over her child by Gan Wenliang.

Gan and his wife had promised to find Li a job in Anji, another county 300 kilometers away. However, once there, Gan took the child and sold him for 12,000 yuan ($1,900) to another man.

Police discovered that the boy was then resold at least 10 times, each time for a higher price.

Li, who was also sold to a man looking for a wife, returned to her village to get her residency permit so she could get married. Noticing the child was missing, her relatives raised the alarm.

Jiang Zhaoyun, the boy's father, called police to report the boy missing in August 2010.

The child was eventually found and returned to his family in October.

Several people involved in the sale of the child were recently given prison sentences ranging from two to seven years.