Tian in court (Photo/Newssc.org)

A doctor surnamed Tian, who gave a teenager sex reassignment surgery without parental consent, faced charges of intentional assault at Wuhou District People's Court in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan province on Tuesday morning.

15-year-old Xiao Yuan (a pseudonym) wanted to have a sex reassignment operation. To do this, he traveled alone to Chengdu from his hometown in central China's Henan province on May 22, 2015, unbeknownst to his parents.

Tian was an intern at a medical beauty clinic in Chengdu's Wuhou District at that time. He had not yet obtained a physician's license when he performed the operation to remove Xiao Yuan's testicles, inflicting the teenager with second-degree injuries.

When Xiao Yuan returned home, his father learned about the operation and went to Chengdu to report the case to the local police. On Jan. 19, the defendant, Tian, pleaded guilty in court, and paid 650,000 yuan to the victim in compensation. The court will soon fix a date for its verdict.

Male cos-players put on make-up before performance. (File/Photo)

Before the surgery, 15-year-old Xiao Yuan had set up a cartoon studio together with his friends. He was disgusted with his male identity and, due to a strong inner desire to become a real woman, he frequently performed costumed role-playing.

According to Tian, he got in touch with Xiao through QQ, an online messaging service, and told Xiao Yuan that he could do a testicular removal surgery. The two then agreed to do the operation in Chengdu.

When Xiao Yuan arrived in Chengdu, Tian took him to the Korean beauty clinic, which was located in Wuhou District. Per Tian's request, Xiao Yuan signed a disclaimer and gave a copy of his identity card. Tian did not care that Xiao was born in 2000, and therefore only 15 years old. They went ahead with the surgery without obtaining consent from Xiao’s guardians.

Xiao Yuan's father reported the case to the Wuhou public security bureau on June 22, 2015. Police immediately summoned the legal representative—in this case Lee, Tian's wife. Wuhou District Procuratorate approved Tian’s arrest on suspicion of intentional injury on Sept. 2, 2015. The Wuhou Korean beauty clinics were shut down by the Wuhou District Health Bureau on the same day.

Tian said that he had performed the sex reassignment operation on several people before. Some of them provided ID while others did not. Tian said, "I did not know Xiao Yuan was only 15 years old until I was arrested."

Tian and his wife have paid a total of 650,000 yuan in compensation and received Criminal Understanding from Xiao Yuan's family. The court will soon fix a date for its verdict.