A federal charge has been brought against a woman from North Smithfield for reportedly taking her five children out of the country without informing their father.
On Monday, U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha announced that Jessica Abreu, who is 33 years old, has been arraigned on a charge of international parental kidnapping.
In December 2021, Abreu relocated her five children, all under the age of 16, to Alabama without any prior permission, as stated in court documents.
In May of the following year, one of Abreu’s children sent a text to their father, who is Abreu’s ex-husband, expressing how much they would miss him. This alerted the father to the fact that Abreu had taken all five children to Tanzania, as stated by Cunha.
Abreu missed the scheduled visitation in June 2022 with her father, as well as a court hearing in July 2022.
According to Cunha, Abreu was found to be in violation of the August court order that granted joint custody of the children to her and her ex-husband, and established Rhode Island as their “home state”, when she took the kids to Tanzania and did not return. As a result, the father was granted sole legal custody.
In the previous month, Abreu traveled with her five children to Los Angeles, where she was met by the FBI and R.I. Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF). Following her arrest, the children were reunited with their father.
Abreu was released from custody after her arraignment on an unsecured bond, which included a GPS tracking device.
