Authorities said a New Hampshire man, who fled the country with his wife and stepdaughter over a decade ago, was arrested Wednesday at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
NECN noted that U.S. Marshalls said Scott Kelly was taken into custody when he and his stepdaughter, Mary Nunes, now 19, landed in Georgia on a flight from Costa Rica.
Law enforcement officials were first alerted that the pair would be returning to the U.S. when they went to the U.S. Department of State office in Costa Rica to obtain travel documentation.
In 2004, Kelly, his wife, Genevieve, and Nunes, all left New Hampshire without the permission or knowledge of Nunes’ biological father Mark Nunes. Prosecutors claim that move violated a court order.
The mother turned herself in to authorities last November. She said left because she was trying to protect her daughter as she was being abused by her father. However, those claims were never proven. She has been charged with charged with custodial interference the same charge Kelly faces.
The Associated Press reported that there were no warrants for the stepdaughter and she was released.
Investigators were relieved that she was finally found safe.
"It's been a long 10 years," said Deputy Marshal Jamie Berry. "We had a lot of lookalikes we had investigated. We followed a lot of false leads, but we had to follow them all. Mary's safe and that was the overall goal for us."