On the evening of September 27th around 8:30 p.m., a Toyota sedan with New York state license plates was stopped at the Rainbow Bridge port of entry at Niagara Falls in New York. The car had two passengers: 55-year-old Mei Tian and her 12-year-old daughter. Following some questioning, Mei, who is from Irvine, California, was arrested on the spot and charged with international parental kidnapping, while her daughter was later reunited with her father.
The federal assistant prosecutor for the Western District of New York, Aaron J. Mango, stated that on that evening, Mei and her daughter were trying to enter Canada via Uber but were refused entry because an official had doubts about Mei’s eligibility to enter. Mei provided a handwritten letter claiming to have her husband’s permission to take her daughter abroad, but the official questioned the authenticity of the letter, suspecting the signature might be forged. Consequently, the mother and daughter re-entered the United States.
Officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) discovered that Mei had no right to take her daughter out of the country. When asked why they were heading to Canada, Mei said they were just going for leisure, but her daughter revealed they had just been denied entry into Canada. At that moment, an official saw Mei tap her daughter’s left leg, indicating her not to speak further. Subsequently, they were taken along with the driver for further inspection.
During the inspection, CBP officials found multiple alerts related to Mei and her daughter, including a record written by the National Targeting Center (NTC) of the Department of Homeland Security stating that Mei’s minor children were prohibited from leaving the United States by court order. Upon contacting the NTC, CBP officials learned that Mei had been “eluding” with her daughter since August this year.
State department officials provided an interim emergency order from the Orange County Superior Court in California, explicitly stating that neither parent was allowed to take the daughter out of Orange County and its surrounding areas without court approval.
Upon inspecting Mei’s luggage, CBP officers found she was carrying three large and one small suitcase, indicating she was prepared for a long-term journey or relocation. Additionally, her luggage contained multiple travel documents, including her U.S. and Chinese passports, her daughter’s Chinese travel documents, and the Orange County birth certificate.
Investigations revealed that Mei planned to travel to China with her daughter after arriving in Canada. The Uber driver, Mr. Chen, informed CBP officer Lee that he was hired to drive passengers to a hotel in Canada. He picked up Mei and her daughter at 34th Street in Manhattan and was instructed to take them to an address near Niagara Falls in Canada, which turned out to be a local Airbnb. Chen mentioned that he would receive $950 to $1,000 for the trip, paid through the Chinese app where he received the booking. During the ride, he conversed with Mei about her purpose for the trip, to which she mentioned meeting a friend she hadn’t seen in 25 years and planning to book tickets to China with her daughter.
At the same time, the Riverside County District Attorney’s office in California was also investigating the case of Mei kidnapping her daughter, as the father was the sole guardian of the girl. The office stated that Mei was supposed to return the daughter to the father during a visitation on August 11, but she failed to do so. On August 13, the father applied for an emergency temporary order, and local prosecutors subsequently executed a search warrant at Mei’s residence, only to find she had terminated her lease, sold her car, and disappeared.
Mei currently faces charges of international parental kidnapping and making false statements to CBP officers. These charges carry a maximum penalty of eight years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Her detention hearing was scheduled for October 3, but it was postponed to next week as her lawyer requested to meet Mei with an interpreter.
Why would a mother taking her child on a trip be charged with “parental kidnapping”? Many Chinese immigrants may not be aware that in the United States and Canada, children under 18 require written consent from both parents or legal guardians to travel abroad. Disregarding this legal requirement could lead to criminal charges.
If one parent takes the child out of the country and hinders the other parent’s rights, it constitutes a federal felony in the United States. In 2014, a Chinese mother attempted to take her child back to China, but when the ex-husband alerted the authorities, the FBI requested the plane, which had already exited U.S. airspace, to return. Upon landing, the FBI arrested the mother and charged her with international kidnapping.
Even if parents are not divorced, one party cannot unilaterally take the child out of the country. If acquiring a passport for the child, both parents must sign a consent form. Violating court-ordered custody arrangements by taking the child elsewhere might lead to charges of parental kidnapping.
States like New York have monitoring systems in place. If parents are concerned about the other party taking the child, they can file a report with the police, and border crossings will have relevant records to prevent illegal departures.