An unlicensed midwife misused synthetic oxytocin, a labour-inducing agent, causing the deaths of a pregnant woman and her unborn child. The broken-hearted husband jumped into a river and drowned himself after the tragedy, Eastday.com reports.

Wu, the self-proclaimed midwife, has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison and fined 1,000 yuan (US$120) for her negligence.

Wu and her husband arrived in Shanghai from Anhui Province in 1998, before which she had gained some medical knowledge but was not certified to practise midwifery.

The couple rented a 12-square-metre room near Changning Road, where they delivered the children of poor mothers.

The pregnant Wei promised to pay 300 yuan (US$36) for the oxytocin treatment after receiving the injection. But Wei grew more and more uncomfortable during the next two hours, and she and her unborn baby died before being sent to hospital.

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