Johnson County mother heads to Dubai in international custody battle
By Angie Ricono
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KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KCTV) — Lana Borysov’s fight for partial custody of her 4-year-old son Andrew is now in Dubai.
The little boy and his father suddenly left for the United Arab Emirates almost a year ago, on Jan. 9.
Lana says she thought they were taking a day trip to Lincoln, Missouri. The family car was discovered at the airport.
Lana says the couple had been discussing divorce and shared custody. The father is from Ukraine. Lana understood shared custody might involve the UK but says she was stunned when her husband took Andrew to Dubai.
Andrew is a U.S. citizen and most recently lived in Overland Park. Lana is a U.S. citizen too, but she was born in Russia.
Lana considers what happened as a parental abduction and filed a police report. She’s been waging court battles and now learning how complex the fight will be.
According to the Department of Justice, international custody cases like these happen every day. Many are peacefully resolved through due international agreements pursuant to the Hague Convention.
However, it only applies if both countries involved are signatories to the Convention. UAE is not a member.
“So, when you lose your child it’s almost impossible to get your children back here,” said Lana Borysov.
Lana recently flew to Dubai armed with a US court order that grants her shared custody.
The order reads: “The parties’ minor child is ordered to return back to the United States as soon as reasonably possible in order to spend time with his mother. Lana Borysov shall travel to Dubai, United Arab Emirates in order to accompany the child back to the United States for her parenting time.”
But she says once she arrived in Dubai she learned Andrew has a travel ban placed on him and the father is trying to get sole custody through the UAE court system.
Ten months had passed since she saw her son in person.
“He’s still that same light that I feel from him… that I feel in the US. We still have the same bond. I was so scared that we lost it,” said Lana Borysov.
Borysov has been allowed some visitation with her son and shared updated photos and a video with KCTV5.
She recently decided to stay in Dubai as she fights for shared custody which she expects could take a full year.
“Always hope for the best, but prepare for the worst,” said Lana Borysov.
The Center for Missing and Exploited Children says about a quarter of all family abduction cases have an international component.
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