FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

APEX TWINS FOUND

Charlotte, NC - The two minor, twin children were found today at approximately 8:30 p.m. EST in Ottawa, Canada by the Ottawa Police Department.

Ottawa Police, acting on a tip, conducted a routine search at an undisclosed location and discovered the two children, along with Allison Lee Quets. The children are safely in the custody of Canadian Social Services. The North Carolina FBI Victim Witness program is in the process of arranging for the adoptive parents to travel to Canada to be with the children.

Nathan T. Gray, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in North Carolina, praised the efforts of the Ottawa Police Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and other Canadian and U.S. authorities for bringing this investigation and search to a successful and safe ending.

The Ottawa Police Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and other Canadian authorities launched a comprehensive and extensive media campaign requesting Canadian citizens to assist authorities in locating the two children.

An application seeking a provisional arrest warrant was forwarded by the U.S. Department of Justice to Canadian authorities on Dec. 28. A Canadian judge signed the provisional arrest warrant today, which was utilized by Ottawa authorities to effect the arrest of Quets.

The FBI in North Carolina launched an investigation involving the disappearance of the two minor children from Apex. Allison Lee Quets, 49, of Durham and formally from Orlando, FL area, was suspected of taking the two minor children out of the U.S. in violation of a previously established custody order emanating from the state of Florida. The FBI investigation determined that Quets crossed the Canadian border, on Dec. 23 with the two minor children.

The FBI worked jointly with the Ottawa Police Department, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and the FBI Legal Attaché office in the U.S. Embassy, Ottawa, Canada and the Durham Police Department to successfully locate the missing children.

According to statements, Quets allegedly picked up the two minor children on December 22 from the adoptive parents, per the custody order, and were to be returned to the adoptive parents on December 24. Quets did not return the two children. A federal warrant was issued on Dec. 27 by a United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, charging Quets for violation of Title 18, U.S.C. Section 1204, International Parental Kidnapping. Additionally, a provisional arrest warrant application was filed with Canadian authorities to assist in locating Quets and returning the two children to the U.S.

The FBI enlisted the assistance of the National Center for Missing/Exploited Children (NCMEC), along with Child Find Canada. Child Find Canada assists in the search for missing children and advocates the rights of children.

The FBI will provide updates as they become available. This is still an on-going criminal investigation and the FBI continues to work with Canadian authorities, gathering evidence related to this matter.

 

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