An Auckland father is outraged his 14-year-old daughter was able to run away to Australia without permission and that Australian police let her enter the country despite frantic calls to have her sent back home.
Peter Sanders says his daughter Melissa flew to Brisbane by herself on Saturday and he's now left wondering how both sides of the border let him down.
He says he has no words to describe the hurt and worry he's feeling being away from her.
Mr Sanders woke up on Saturday morning to find Melissa gone and her room empty.
"I went to the police and reported her missing, they did checks and found out she was on a plane, halfway to Brisbane Airport," he says.
Melissa's parents are both in New Zealand, they are separated and her father has full custody.
So, at Mr Sander's request, New Zealand police contacted Australian police to stop Melissa at Brisbane Airport
Australian federal police found Melissa after she had been met by one of Mr Sander's ex partners. Police held them for a while, but let them go.
"I'm outraged basically because they've let me down and let my child go through knowing that she's a runaway and basically been kidnapped," says Mr Sanders.
In a statement, Australian federal police said:
"Officers spoke with two people at Brisbane Airport. One was a young person, who was in the company of a person who identified herself as the young person's stepmother."
They then spoke to Melissa's mother in New Zealand who said she was satisfied that Melissa was safe, but wanted her to return home.
Melissa's mother denies this - saying she requested Melissa to be put in the care of child services immediately before returning to New Zealand.
Mr Sanders has now enlisted the help of MP Phil Twyford.
"I cannot understand what the Australian police were thinking of, handing this 14-year-old to another adult in Australia when they must have known that the girl's father in New Zealand wanted her in New Zealand," says Mr Twyford.
New Zealand Customs says it doesn't check if a child has permission from their parents or legal guardians to travel.
It's not known which airline Melissa travelled with, but they each have their own rules on how old a passenger must be before travelling without a parent or guardian's permission.
Australian federal police says it will respond to any court order to have Melissa returned to New Zealand.
Mr Twyford says he has written to Police Minister Anne Tolley in a bid to get Melissa home as soon as possible.
3 News
source: newshub archive
