A mother from Utah, accused of kidnapping her four kids and traveling to Europe under the belief that the world was ending, has been arrested after the children were discovered at an orphanage.
Elesia Ann Seymour, 35, was detained in Croatia, as confirmed by the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office. This incident follows an alarming getaway that transpired nearly two months ago.
Her ex-husband, Kendall Seymour, traveled to Europe to bring the children home. They are currently accompanied by another American child, he shared in a fundraising update over the weekend.
“The children are in a state-run orphanage in Croatia. We’re working on getting them released from local custody,” Kendall, a father of three, mentioned.
He noted the complex legal process ahead: hiring a Croatian lawyer experienced in child abduction cases, preparing a Hague Convention application, and securing a court-approved interpreter, he explained as he sought to raise $100,000.
“It’s hard to predict how much we’ll need overall to settle everything for us,” he added cautiously.
Kendall also revealed that another American child, who traveled with Elesia, is being held in the same orphanage.
“My children were with this child and his mother. Their situation seems even more complicated than ours,” he expressed.
The details about this fifth child and his connection to his mother in Utah remain undisclosed.
Elesia, who openly discussed her apocalyptic beliefs on a private TikTok account, was arrested in Dubrovnik on January 16, as reported by local authorities.
She had secretly boarded a flight from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam on November 29, without notifying either of her ex-husbands.
On December 10, her son Landon Hal Seymour, 11, was added to an endangered missing list, alongside his siblings: Levi Parker Seymour, 8; Hazel Ray Seymour, 7; and Jacob Kurt Brady, 3, as per the Utah Department of Public Safety.
Recently, Elesia faced an indictment on four counts of “Custody Interference – Removal of a Child Out of State,” categorized as a third-degree felony.
No announcements have been made yet regarding future trial dates or the potential for extradition back to the United States.
