Posts
Published: September 22, 2016, 4:36 pm
QUEENSBURY,
N.Y. (NEWS10) — A Queensbury man is raising awareness to a growing global issue
of International Child Abduction. It happens when a child is wrongfully taken
and held in another country by a parent.
Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon.
Corey McKeighan shares custody of
his son Xavier with his mother who is from Russia.
What was supposed to be a mother and
son three week trip to her country, has McKeighan worried he will never get his
son back.
Xavier is bright and full of energy.
He just turned 4 on Monday.
“He was the best kid in the world. He
was happy, he was funny.”
His ex-wife agreed to return on
September 16th.
“The day before they were supposed to
return, she had called me and said, ‘We’re not coming back and you’ll never see
us again.'”
In a panic, McKeighan contacted the
U.S. State Department, FBI, and congressional leaders. They are working with
the foreign government to resolve this case that they say is international
child abduction.
“It’s a gigantic problem,”
International Family Law Attorney Jeremy Morley said.
Morley has worked on hundreds of these
types of cases. In Russia, it is difficult because our countries are not in a
treaty relationship.
“We know that the Russian legal system
is unpredictable. What I would do in a case like this is start the process by
making contact with the taken parent and advising the taken parent of how
dangerous their intended course of conduct is.”
Xavier was diagnosed with autism and
his routine and treatment is back home in New York.
His father is still waiting to give
his son a card for his 4th birthday.
“The first thing I would do is sing,
‘Who Let the Dogs Out’ with him because that’s one of our favorite songs,”
Corey said. “I feel like I keep hitting walls. I just keep seeing him in my
heart and in my mind. It pushes me nonstop ever day, just trying to do what I
can.”
A U.S. State Department official says:
“We are aware of the reports regarding
an international parental child abduction case. Due to privacy
considerations, we decline to provide additional details.
One of the Department’s highest
priorities is the welfare of U.S. citizens overseas. This is particularly true
for children, who are among our most vulnerable citizens. The Bureau of
Consular Affairs, along with our Embassies and Consulates, works with parents
and foreign governments to try to resolve these difficult cases. Generally
speaking, in cases involving international parent-child abductions a U.S.
Embassy or Consulate can facilitate contact with local authorities, provide
information on local judicial and law enforcement processes, offer a list of
attorneys and translators, and issue passports or other travel documents as
appropriate under U.S law.”
McKeighan has created a Facebook Page to
raise awareness of this global issue in the hopes of bringing Xavier back home
to the United States.
