NEED TO KNOW
- Elleshia Anne Seymour’s four children were reported missing in December following their stay with her during Thanksgiving
- Landon Seymour, 11, Levi Parker Seymour, 8, Hazel Raye Seymour, 7, and 3-year-old Jacob Kurt Brady have since been located in Croatia
- Elleshia is in pre-trial detention in Croatia following her arrest
The four siblings found at a European orphanage following their alleged abduction from Utah in November have a long way to go before they could be back in the care of their guardians, one of whom had reported them missing.
Landon Seymour, 11, Levi Parker Seymour, 8, Hazel Raye Seymour, 7, and 3-year-old Jacob Kurt Brady were found in a state-operated orphanage nearly two months after disappearing over Thanksgiving from West Jordan, Utah, according to Kendall Seymour, who is the father of three of the children.
Elleshia Anne Seymour — Kendall’s ex-wife and the children’s mother, who Utah authorities accuse of abducting them — has since been arrested in the Croatian city of Dubrovnik, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia confirms to PEOPLE.
GoFundMe
The children were located following an intense campaign on GoFundMe by Kendall, who announced on Sunday, Jan. 25, that they were “trapped” in the state-run orphanage.
Croatian officials tell PEOPLE the children are in safe care of the state, pending further assessment of the situation.
“Particular attention is being paid to the prevention of any potential risk to the children and to the protection of their physical and psychological well-being, in line with the best interests of the children,” the ministry tells PEOPLE.
“In accordance with applicable legislation, the children have been placed in an appropriate social welfare care facility, where all necessary forms of care, protection, and support are being provided, and where their needs are being fully and adequately met,” the ministry adds.
Croatia’s Ministry of Interior further tells PEOPLE that Kendall has been briefed on the procedure and documentation that must be submitted in order to collect the children.
The Ministry of Interior further says that the U.S. has a crucial role to play in the next steps.
Given the international element of the case, it is necessary for the competent authorities of the country from which the children came to the Republic of Croatia to conduct the procedure of verifying all relevant facts and circumstances and to make a valid decision on the handover of the children,” the ministry tells PEOPLE. (The Ministry of Interior’s message was in Croatian and later translated.)
Gofundme
The children were reported missing after West Jordan police conducted a welfare check at Elleshia’s home on Dec. 2 and found it unlocked and unoccupied, according to court records previously cited by ABC 4 Utah.
Surveillance footage from Salt Lake International Airport has since been released, showing a woman authorities claim is Elleshia with heavy bags and four children, at least two of whom are also carrying luggage. The footage, published by ABC 4 and KSL Utah, shows Elleshia interacting calmly with Delta personnel with her children nearby.
She was subsequently charged by Utah authorities with four counts of custodial interference and removing a child from the state after allegedly abducting the children, per court records, ABC 4 reported.
She has since been arrested in the Croatian city of Dubrovnik and is being held in pre-trial detention following a decision by a local court, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia tells PEOPLE.
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While an exact motive has not been announced, those who know Elleshia claim she had become paranoid about the world ending before the children went missing.
She believed the “end of times” were near and had concerns of “biblical events,” a former boyfriend previously told KSL Utah.
Kendall said in his initial GoFundMe post that she had left behind a “to-do” list that included “shred paperwork, destroy identifying photos, throw away phone, purchase pre-paid phone.”
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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