Vancouver police have located missing nine-year-old Emerson Cusworth safe near Phoenix, Arizona.
His mother, Shawana Puja Chaudhary, 34, has been arrested and is expected to be extradited back to Canada to face charges.
Emerson was reported missing by his father on March 9. Chaudhary shares custody of the boy with his father and they have a court-ordered parenting schedule. Emerson’s father went to pick him up after school that day, as per the schedule, but he wasn’t there.
Police were called and detectives from the department’s special investigation’s section took over.
“Detectives were able to track Chaudhary, Emerson and his younger sister to the Phoenix area,” said department spokesperson Const. Jason Doucette. “With the assistance of the United States Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Marshal Service the three were located safe on Tuesday, March 27."
He added that, with help from the Ministry of Children and Family Development, steps are being taken to return Emerson and his sister to Canada.
"Our partners in the United States have been more than helpful and we worked together on this diligently, and have been day and night, since March 9 and yesterday afternoon they were located safe."
Doucette was not able to comment on when Chaudhary crossed the border with her children, but said that in a case like this investigators would have reached out to partner agencies in the Lower Mainland, Canada and the U.S. fairly quickly.
"We're so close to a border here we cover all of our options," Doucette said. "The VPD, when we receive calls like this, we will reach out to all our partner agencies."
Crown counsel has approved a charge of abduction in contravention of a custody order against Chaudhary related to the alleged abduction and she will be arrested by Vancouver police when she is returned to Canada.
