Three boys were reunited with their mothers Wednesday in California, more than two years after they were allegedly kidnapped by their fathers and taken into hiding in Europe, the FBI said.
Fugitive brothers John and George Silah were arrested last week in the Netherlands after being sought by the FBI since 2008 for allegedly taking their children from Los Angeles without the consent of their custodial mothers.John Silah is accused of kidnapping his son Greg, now 12. George Silah is accused of kidnapping his sons Alexander, now 14, and Zaven, 11. The men face state and federal parental kidnapping charges and remain in custody in the Netherlands awaiting the next step in the international legal process, the FBI said.
The boys returned home over the weekend."Two years, four months and four days after Christine and Zanni last spoke to their children, they were reunited. Alex, Greg and Zaven have returned home to their families who love them and have missed them very much," mothers Christine Stackhouse and Zanni Kalayejian said in a statement Thursday."Both families appreciate the media attention to this case and the dignity and privacy afforded them while they were re-introduced to their loved ones."The boys were supposed to take a Disney cruise with their fathers in July 2008, but they never made it, the boy's families said on a website dedicated to their return.
