Boy Hidden in Crawlspace to Keep Away From Dad

Two years ago, an Illinois father, Mike Chekevdai, was awarded temporary custody of his son, Richard "Ricky" Chekevdia. Mom, Shannon Wilfong, then took her son and went into hiding...into her mother's home in a specially built room no higher than a washing machine. The child's grandmother says that she did put the boy into this crawlspace but he didn't live there. I sure hope not!

Says a police officer:

"We let him out of the police car and he ran around like he's never seen the outdoors," said Illinois State Police Sgt. Stan Diggs. "It was actually very sad."

All this time, the boy was three miles from his father, who had no idea what had happened to his son. The mother had accused the father of molesting their son, but child welfare didn't find any evidence of abuse.

The mother is now in jail (charged with felony kidnapping). Her mother and her fiance are being charged with aiding and abetting.

Dad will be reunited with his son later this week.

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Non-Custodial Mom Kidnaps Sick Infant From Hospital

A non-custodial mother kidnapped her sick infant son, who was in the hospital for viral asthma and/or pneumonia (reports differ), and his two siblings from a hospital in California. She disconnected all of the infant's machines and took off with no medications or anything! The custodial father was talking to the doctors about his son in another part of the hospital at the time she walked out of the hospital with the three children. The children were found in New Mexico and mom was arrested. She faces three counts of child abduction and one count of child endangerment.

I can't imagine, as a mother, removing my very ill infant from the hospital machines and taking him not only from the hospital, but driving him to another state! The reports say she didn't take medications with her.

I have asthma and I know that when I was bad enough to be hospitalized, every second felt like torture...when you are trying to get that breath and you can't. It was terrifying. I can't imagine putting my child of any age at risk and she kidnapped a child who couldn't talk and tell her how bad he was feeling.

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