Daughters abducted by their mother forcibly returned to Italian home | 60 Minutes Australia

it is one of the most dramatic child abduction cases in living memory an Australian mother Laura Garrett kidnaps her four daughters from their father in Italy claiming he is an abusive monster the Australian Embassy in Rome believes her and illegally assists in smuggling the four girls to Australia but that's only the start of the drama two years later the girls are forced to return to Italy and their father leading to extraordinary scenes as they staged a final hysterical struggle with police at the airport it was a story that captivated the country but we've never heard the girls side of the story that is until now [Music] [Applause] [Music] for a time in late 2012 Emily and Claire Vincente and their little sisters Christine and Lily held a nation spellbound in sympathy there have been dramatic scenes at the home of four young girls forced to return to their father in Italy police swarmed on the mother's unit the girls were forcibly put into a car and take it away for girls seemingly turned from their mother's arms to be sent back to an abusive father in Italy and you know that night they came all of a sudden and took us away and it was hmm which one was hard yeah he looked incredibly traumatizing yeah yeah I [Music] didn't want to get on the plane oh it's the truth I didn't want to go back to flee and I wanted to stay with mum that's why I mean I was crying and very afraid now two years on from their dramatic Australian departure at 16 and 17 Claire and Emily Vincente are all grown up with Christine and Lily they've settled into life with their father Tomas [Music] how often do you reflect on how different your home is here in Florence to the Sunshine Coast Australia well it's pretty different just looking around there's none of this in Australia yeah two beautiful young women living in the beautiful city of Florence the city where their parents Laura and Tommaso fell in love at the same age I mean how they met and their stories pretty but Laura and Tomaso's fairytale romance soured and sundered and in its place were awful allegations of violence three years after they split and unknown to the girls laura claimed she had no choice but to flee easily with her four young daughters to keep them safe from their father he's very scary man anyone who's been in an abusive relationship perhaps will understand the fear that a person has over you if they are violent and they hurt you and they're abusive you're always scared they're going to do it again and that's the power he's had over the girls of me but there was no proof to Laura's claims she'd never complained of any abuse to Italian authorities but she used the lie to convince Australian embassy officials in Rome she needed to flee Italy and embassy officials never once bothered to check the truth as her husband Tommaso also told us back then why the Australian Embassy and the Australian Authority don't look my version of their story why the Australian Embassy is not my it is not camera in my house or telephone with me for ask me what's happened this is just unfair instead the embassy illegally helped Laura arrange what seemed to be a mercy flight to the safety of Australia but to the girls unaware they were fleeing it was simply exciting what did you know and when your mom decided to leave easily your home and don't take you to Australia what did you think was happening and I think just start that point mum just wanted to return home that's what she did do you remember the mood your mum's mood about catching the flight which was fine yeah I think we were all okay weren't any nerves how did you feel about living dad forever I thought that was gonna come over to visit us and stay with us so I wasn't really yeah I didn't really think about what could have happened yeah we certainly didn't imagine all this while their mother was flying straight into a criminal case of child abduction Emily and Claire were flying into dreams of a teenage paradise beaches and boyfriends so when you got to Australia how was it other started was hard because we had to learn a new language but I think we settled in pretty easily yeah we weren't English pretty fast and yeah we also made friends and in school was going pretty well happily living in Australia what the girls didn't know was that their dad had been told they were just on a holiday and when Laura told him they weren't coming back he decided he'd come for them holding Australia to its responsibilities under an international treaty on child abduction when did you learn that you might have to come back to Italy oh yeah I think after Mother's remember that one day mum was in the kitchen and then she had this stack of papers and you know it was a tie I asked her what is going on she said your dad wants you to come back to Italy and that's what it all started you sheltered from the truth that they'd been taken illegally from Italy by their mother the girls were suddenly faced with the shocking reality that they were days away from leaving the lives they'd built for reasons they didn't understand scared and angry what happened next just made it worse their mother's grandmother took them on the run sending out recorded messages to the media one of the reasons that your mother gave for leaving Italy as she did with you and your sisters was that your father was an abusive and violent man that she was frightened of what he was doing to her and to you guys you know I mean none of that has happened as you said at the time the reason we don't want to go back to our Father is we are scared of him the whole situation that we were hiding and our story was on the newspapers and I mean mm if I think about it now maybe I've said stuff that I exaggerated a little bit and that was just because I you know I was liking my life in Australian that was just because I didn't want to leave and you were you know you around adults who were trying to stop you from going and now trying to find any measure to keep you in Australia they thought that I was right to do I think they understood that was best Ross maybe you know was it no for Claire and Emily watching their final traumatic moments in Australia isn't easy but they want to set the record straight that their fear was about leaving their mother returning to a father who'd become somewhat of a stranger and to a country they no longer considered home we didn't know you but we were so worried about you you just sounded so anguished not that you were being taken to the airport how scared were you well quite scared it'll happened all of a sudden and just didn't know what was gonna happen later and we do know how to deal with it then there were these public scenes they staged at their father's house initially it's heart-wrenching to witness but the girls tell me it was their only way of showing the world how angry they were at being uprooted from Australia those first couple of weeks and months when you came back to Italy was it as bad as it looked like well it was hard but as time went on things got easier we start again you started again yeah I mean new life new friends and a building of a relationship with your father yeah when you reflect on the time in Australia and you reflect on the last two years here what would have been a better decision for you do you think it's not our responsibility but it was moms and dads to find you know the best way for us to you know live happily with both of them how do you think they handled that bad maybe not in the best way and why do you think that was I think they were thinking more about themselves than us you know because we were put at the center of this whole situation and I don't know they were a little bit selfish because you know we had we went through all of this I mean they did as well but it was most hard for us and them because you know they're the adults [Music] even as they were trying to settle back in Italy Claire and Emily had to deal with a childish Facebook campaign instructing them on how to make life difficult for their father messages suggesting they put his mobile in the dishwasher drown his computer in the bath flooded in from Laura's family and friends in Australia messages the girls refused to read what did she think those messages was costume I think the odd I think that would have helped us if we did that I think I just made my loss yeah [Music] oh the tranquility of these Tuscan hills seems a world away from the strain of a bitter custody battle and other little things we'll behaved sometimes they try to chew you your fingers but for the last two years this has been a place of rebuilding of renewing the bond between a father and his daughters could you imagine your life without your daughter's here with you no it's impossible to imagine my life without them because they are my life complete my life yeah what do you think of his need decision to fight for you so hard maybe he realized that he didn't want to have relationship with us and that he wanted us in his life again well he says you are his life yeah what's that like to hear oh I just feel loved I feel loved yeah [Music] their life is now here in Italy finishing school developing their relationship with Tommaso and of course their boyfriends there's only one shadow to their happiness a mother they haven't seen in two years although they talk every day laura has told them she's been too busy to see them in Italy what has she told you about why she can't come to visit you just because she's she's got uni and work that's the main thing but probably were going to see her this summer she's coming to visit us how are you feeling about that very happy yes to recognize flaws in our own parents is often a painful revelation when their mistakes are made for the world to see it is both harder to forgive and forget Emily and Claire and their younger sisters Christine and Lily are now clearly settled with their father but like so many children caught in the middle of warring parents what they really want is a lasting peace with both mum and dad the calmness that you both have in the happiness that you describe now has that come about due to resignation you know that you have no choice but to be here so you must get on with life or is it a real sense of calm and a real sense of happiness I think at the start it was because we didn't have any choice so that was it but you know um I'm happy with my life you know Australia is very far away but I would like to you know and do both and both go visit mum and her family and stay a little bit here with that you know go for holidays over in Australia or here initially through half and half not just with one yeah cuz we need both of us hello I'm Tara Brown thanks for watching to keep up with the latest from 60 minutes Australia make sure you subscribe to our Channel you can also download the 9 now app for full episodes and other exclusive 60 minutes content

Channel: 60 Minutes Australia

Views: 1,323,699

Keywords: 60 Minutes, 60 Minutes Australia, Liz Hayes, Charles Wooley, Tara Brown, Liam Bartlett, Allison Langdon, Tom Steinfort, Ellen Fanning, Peter Overton, Karl Stefanovic, Ray Martin, Peter Stefanovic, Peter Harvey, Michael Usher, George Negus, Gerald Stone, Sarah Abo, the italian girls, child abduction, child abduction case, Emily Vincenti, claire vincenti, kidnapping, australia, italy, embassy, stolen

Id: vz4wZhD7kcw

Length: 15min 22sec (922 seconds)

Published: Tue Jan 07 2020