A New York mom who traveled to China to rescue her young son from the father who snatched him away is on her way home with the boy.
“It’s been an “extremely, extremely stressful situation,” said Camille Colvin, 35, holding her 5-year-old son, Griffin Guo, at a news conference in Beijing, where she arrived yesterday after an overnight drive from Zhengzhou on the first leg of her return trip.
The Upper East Side resident had spent nine days in the central China city, where she reportedly negotiated a deal with her ex-husband, Guo Rui, in which she handed over $60,000 in return for custody of the boy, whom Rui allegedly spirited from the U.S. during a custody visit in July.
Yesterday, Colvin’s family confirmed they paid to secure the boy’s freedom, but would not say how much money they the handed over.
Chinese press reports said Guo’s family demanded as much as $130,000 before the $60,000 figure was settled on.
“From the very beginning, the conversation, the negotiation, revolved around money,” said Colvin’s brother, Cal Elliot.
Guo, a sculptor who formerly lived in Elmhurst, Queens, told the Chinese press he did not believe he “abducted” the boy because the preschooler was his son and he had a right to take him wherever he wanted. He also said that because the boy was born in China, custody should be decided under Chinese law. With Post Wire Services