World

American Dad Seeks Son In Cuba

November 21, 2000 / 3:38 PM EST / AP

A Florida man whose ex-wife fled to Cuba with their 5-year-old son asked Cuban authorities to honor a U.S. court order granting him temporary custody of the boy, his lawyer said.

Jon Colombini, 31, arrived in Havana on Monday hoping to persuade his ex-wife, Arletis Blanco, to allow him to return to the United States with their son, Jonathon.

After visiting with the boy and his mother, Colombini was unable to convince his ex-wife that Jonathon should live with him in Miami, his lawyer, Michael Berry, said. He said Wednesday that Colombini would press ahead with legal efforts to get the U.S.-born boy back.

Berry said he had met with high-ranking Cuban officials over the last two days about the case and described their response as "attentive and cooperative."

"We remain optimistic that the Cuban government will honor the court order granting temporary custody of Jonathon," he said. "We expect them to act in the interests of the child."

The Cuban government had no immediate comment on the case.

On Nov. 12, Blanco, 29, left the Florida Keys on a 21-foot fishing boat bound for Cuba with her son, boyfriend Agustin Lemus, 37, and their infant daughter.

Since returning to Cuba, Blanco has been living with Jonathon in the western province of Pinar del Rio where she says she wants them to start a new life. She was under investigation by Florida authorities on embezzlement charges when she left the country.

Reports show Colombini shares custody of the boy with his ex-wife, but Colombini has said he wants the boy raised in the United States.

A Dec. 12 court order issued by the Monroe County circuit court in Florida granted Colombini temporary custody of Jonathon, citing the pending investigation against Blanco as a reason Jonathon should be returned to him.

Phone calls seeking comment from Blanco's lawyer in Cuba were not immediately returned.

Followers of the case in Florida have dubbed it "Reverse Elian," a reference to Elian Gonzalez, the 6-year-old boy who was taken from Cuba to Florida last year without his father's permission. The boy became the focus of a protracted custody battle before he was eventually returned to his father in Cuba in June.

Berry said he and Colombini would likely be traveling back to the United States on Thursday.