U.S. parents' Web twins plea

British couple Judith and Alan Kilshaw have vowed to fight for the return of the twins who have been taken into care

LOS ANGELES, California -- An American couple who are trying to reclaim baby twins that they adopted over the Internet say they hope to resolve the dispute amicably.

Six-month-old Belinda and Kimberly were adopted by Californian couple Richard and Vickie Allen via a Web site, only to have the birth mother Tranda Wecker take the twins back and hand them over to a British couple.

The twins were flown to Britain by Judith and Alan Kilshaw of Wales, but have since been taken into care by social welfare authorities, concerned at the media attention the case is attracting.

The Allens said they would like to work things out "amicably" with Wecker and that they would prefer to avoid a court fight.

REFERENCE Internet adoptions   •  Offers abound on Web   •  Web adoption pitfalls   •  Q&A: UK court ruling   •  Quick vote

"The birth mother, my wife and I were friends and we continue to be concerned about her well-being," Richard Allen said.

"We want to try to sit down with Tranda, to have her contact us and amicably work this out for the children's best interest. (We want to) get out of this circus atmosphere and avoid costly and troublesome and heart-rending battles in court."

Wecker has further complicated the situation by announcing that she might want her daughters back.

"My babies' future is now up in the air. I mean, I love my girls...I feel like I was betrayed," said Wecker who also said she had not made any money from either adoption transaction.

Both couples paid thousands of dollars to an Internet adoption agency for the babies.

The Kilshaws have said they will challenge Flintshire County Council's right to take the babies into foster care, with Alan Kilshaw saying: "We have right on our side, I am convinced of that."

The FBI has begun a preliminary investigation into the case, and British authorities said they would be looking closely at whether the twins -- who were brought into Britain on six-month tourist visas -- could legally remain in the country.

Vickie Allen blamed Caring Heart adoption agency's Tina Johnson for organising both adoptions.

"I don't think Tranda had a play in any of that," Vickie Allen said.

"And why did Tina do this. It bothers me very much because we're dealing with children's lives and not with a price of the children, money on their heads."

Reuters contributed to this report.

Internet baby row deepens
January 18, 2001
Couples fight for Internet twins
January 16, 2001

Home Office
British Agencies for Adoption & Fostering
Federal Bureau of Investigation

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.