Emily Koyama - a Perverse Twist

Emily Koyama was released from foster care and returned to her mother, Trina Atwell who originally kidnapped Emily to Costa Rica in February 2009. Emily had been taken into protective custody in preparation for her repatriation to the U.S. after her father, Roy Koyama had won custody in Missouri and the Hague Convention application in Costa Rica.

The case is being watched with intense interest by the U.S. Government in Washington D.C. and the U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica, and not least by the dozen or so other left-behind American parents with children kidnapped to that country.

Emily Koyama was the first child to be ordered home by Costa Rica.

The abducting mother, Trina Atwell successfully solicited the support of the Defensoria de los Habitantes, a non-governmental group which represents the rights of women. The Defensoria was responsible for filing two writs of habeas corpus, the first of which was heard on Friday by the Costa Rican Constitutional Court (Sala IV).

That hearing heard the first of the Defensoria's claims on behalf of Atwell - that the return of Emily Koyama to the United States was unconstitutional.

The court threw out the mother's claims and ruled Emily's repatriation to Costa Rica was correct and constitutional.

In a perverse twist, the same court also ordered the immediate release of Emily BACK to Atwell because the Defensoria had filed on her behalf a second writ claiming refugee status for both her and Emily.

The claim for refugee status has raised eyebrows in both the U.S. and Costa Rica. Atwell had previously publically declared she was going to return to the United States and raised around $2,000 to do so from donations. The question is how serious is her claim for refugee status when she was clearly prepared to voluntarily return to sort out her mess?

There are also questions being raised about the timing of the Defensoria's move. The spokesman for the Defensoria, Ahmed Tabash stated that the Defensoria had been involved since the December hearings which ultimately ordered the return of Emily to America. Why then has neither the Defensoria nor Atwell at any time in the last two years raised the issue of refugee status before? Clearly there is a large amount of gaming the system going on in Costa Rica, and something which is to be hoped will be dealt with summarily.

The controversy surrounding the Atwell claim to be a refugee from the United States is nothing new. Chere Lyn Tomayko was successfully granted refugee status after kidnapping her child from Texas and like Atwell, claiming abuse. Very troubling, the Defensoria did not make inquiries of the Texas judge in that case - the Texan judge stated that no allegations of abuse had ever been brought before him, and the Defensoria has failed to ask the Missouri judge in the Koyama case too.

The question must be asked - is Costa Rica really serious about performing its obligations under international law, or is it another country which has just signed up to look good?

I trust it is the former, but Emily remains unlawfully retained there and her father is now asking for trade sanctions to be applied in the same way a $2.75 billion deal with Brazil was vetoed by Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) - 48 hours afterwards, Sean Goldman was finally returned from Brazil after 5 long years.

Day 9 for Emily Koyama in Foster Care in Costa Rica

It is Day 9 for Emily Koyama who continues to be unlawfully retained from her Daddy in the United States.

Emily was set to come home before Christmas, but her mother - Trina Atwell - who kidnapped Emily in February 2009 disappeared. The Costa Rican court reconvened after the Holiday Season and ordered Emily home - little Emily Koyama was taken into protective foster care to ensure her mother did not abduct her again.

Atwell sought the intercession of a women's rights agency - the Defensoria - in Costa Rica.However, AM Costa Rica, an online news outlet reported today,

Costa Rican officials seem to accept without question the claims by the woman that they have been abused. In the case of Ms. Atwell, the Defensoría said that she was a victim of family violence and fled from the United States to safeguard her physical and psychological integrity and the lives of both.

Acting on Atwell's behalf, they filed for Atwell and Emily Koyama to be treated as refugees from the United States. Without checking with the US judge in Missouri who has already ruled on the issues of Atwell's claims to be a victim of domestic violence, the Costa Rican Defensoria immediately asserts Trina Atwell is a victim of domestic violence and further, the return of Emily back to the United States (from where she was kidnapped) is additional violence against the mother!

This also seems to fly in the face of the fact that Atwell was claiming she was ready to return before December, provided Koyama would have his MO custody order set aside. In other words, if he agreed to drop custody she'd come back.

What I find particularly egregious is the timing of this claim for refugee status. Again according to AM Costa Rica, the Defensoria had been acting with Atwell since the December hearings when it was then ordered to return Emily home to the US:

In a news release Thursday, the Defensoría noted that it had been working with Ms. Atwell as an adviser in judicial actions since December and recently placed its own action in favor of the woman and child in the Sala IV constitutional court.

Did the Costa Rican Defensoria assist Atwell in concealing Emily from the authorities prior to Christmas so they could then play this refugee card?

We'll never know, but as AM Costa Rica continues, the Defensoria has not even bothered to consult with the American judge who dealt with the initial allegations of violence - they are simply taking the word of the mother at face value:

...Ahmed Tabash, who is in charge of the Defensoría press office also said that the agency had not talked to the U.S. judge involved in the case nor to the husband who is in Missouri.

That really does not look good and the motivation of the Defensoria has got to be seriously questionned for acting as it has - after all, where were they for the last 2 years as the Costya Rican courts moved again and again to return this kidnapped 100% American child back home to the US?

Only a couple of weeks ago, Atwel stated in numerous public forums, including Bring Sean Home, that she was planning to return and raising money from donations to effectuate this and post any bail money she needed to post given there is an outstanding kidnapping warrant for her in MO. It was only after the Costa Rican judge got fed-up with her antics and moved to enforce the return order that Atwell played the refugee card.

But my question here is- if Atwell was so terrified, so frightened of Koyama that she could even qualify as a refugee - why was she telling everyone she was ready to return?

It seems Trina is only frightened when she isn't getting her own way.

I also find this refugee issue troubling because of a simple fact overlooked - Trina Atwell has no custody rights in this matter whatsoever. In law, she has no rights - she simply has possession of the child (or at least she did until PANI took Emily into protective custody).

How can Atwell ask for refugee status for a child she has no custody over? It's not as if you or I could take a kid to Canada and ask to be called refugees, and by the way I'll keep the kid I kidnapped.

Sadly, this post comes on the same day the US Department of Justice issued a comprehensive report entitled, "The Crime of Family Abduction" which underlines the continuing trauma child abduction inflicts upon left-behind parents, but most of all little girls and boys like Emily Koyama.

I have tried desperately hard to find evidence AGAINST the father - Roy Koyama.

Trina Atwell, assisted by her sister, Lynette Garet, have made extensive claims of domestic violence, sexual abuse and drug addiction with multiple arrests and convictions for a plethora offenses.

Bear in mind that all these allegations have already been tested in court, both in the United States and Costa Rica - and have been thrown out. Trina Atwell was found to be neither a victim nor credible in her allegations.

Atwell and Garet's credibility has already been called into question given their false claim the father had tried to stop Trina Atwell from seeing Emily while in foster care - a blatant lie as Koyama has done no such thing. Still Garet and Atwell claims this makes Koyama a "Monster!" and they continue to claim this on their Facebook page.

I think they should be looking in the mirror given what they have done to Emily so far.

Roy Koyama - the Brutal Unvarnished Truth

I have performed exhaustive searches of public and court records, trying to find evidence of Roy's supposed addiction to drugs and a violent history of kicking the proverbial out of everyone he meets.

This is what I have discovered:

2005 - Koyama was charged with a domestic violence misdemeanor - the case was thrown out as having no probable cause -his then wife (not Trina) and he got into an argument, she called the cops and in Butte CA it is a mandatory arrest policy which means you call, they haul and someone will go to jail - in this case, as in 99% of cases the cops hauled the man off to jail. The final result was a verdict of NOT GUILTY (do you all hear that - not guilty means he never did anything to begin with)

November 1992 - Koyama got into a fight - that is, when he was in his early-20's (19 years ago) he got into a fight (not with a woman but another man) - he pled no contest and received a fine.

THAT's IT!

One fist fight 19 years ago and a marital argument blown out of proportion. None of which involved Trina Atwell in the slightest degree.

Now where are all these drug convictions and violent crime convictions Koyama has supposed to have committed?

Unless they are even further back in time which takes them before computers were invented (I mean - a 19 year old misdemeanor conviction justifies kidnapping a kid overseas...come on Atwell, pull the other leg it has bells on) - I cannot find anything to show Koyama is not a fit parent.

But then on the other hand....

Trina Atwell:

• Model Mother - kidnapped youngest daughter overseas to Costa Rica - abandoned another daughter behind in the United States;
• Model Wife - marries a Costa Rican man apparently for a green card, leaves him shortly thereafter and has Emily with Roy - leaves Roy for someone else, not her husband - eventually reunites with husband after kidnapping Emily to Costa Rica where he just happens to be and she needs someone to look after her;
• Model Witness - loses her case in 2 courts in 2 countries - claims allegations which still go unsupported by any evidence except her word, repeatedly shown to be thoroughly dishonest in making false claims and allegations;
• Model Role Model - despite claims of heavy substance abuse against the father, which seems to be a load of balls, Trina has an issue with alcohol;
• Model Home Provider - since being taken to Costa Rica, Emily Koyama has been shuttled between different addresses and locations as Trina Atwell sought to hide and manipulate the Costa Rican legal process - something other left-behind parents will be well aware of from their own experiences; and
• Model People - Henner Chavarria, the several times cuckolded husband is also no stranger to alcohol it seems.

I don't like saying these things - there is no pleasure in any of this whatsoever - not least because this is Day 9 of a poor, frightened little girl sleeping in foster care, somewhere in Costa Rica, when she should be sound asleep back home in Springfield Missouri....and would be except for her appallingly behaved mother who cares about her so very much...in between partying like there is no tomorrow left

Now I am off to vomit.

Emily Koyama - Mother Claims Domestic Violence

Emily Koyama was abducted to Costa Rica in February, almost two years ago. Emily only 2 years old today and was a very young baby when when her mother, Trina Atwell kidnapped her from Springfield Missouri.

Trina Atwell has made a string of allegations against the father, Roy Koyama.

The first allegation is Roy was physically and sexually abusive. Atwell is unclear in her allegations on whether Roy was abusive towards her or to Emily or both.

What is beyond dispute is Atwell has been making allegations and claiming to have evidence in the form of police records and such. Despite 2 years elapsing, Atwell has so far shown no inclination to disclose her evidence, either to the US or Costa Rican courts and certainly not to anyone else.

Needless to say, Atwell and her supporters are quite happy to continue making these allegations.

The second set of allegations claims Roy Koyama is a drug addict. Again, Trina Atwell claims to have evidence, but it is not forthcoming.

Trina Atwell's Character

Trina Atwell comes across as an articulate young woman. Her recent performance on a Youtube video makes it clear that she is well-presented and knows her lines very well.



The lack of any evidence against Roy - which she claims to have - is deeply disturbing.

Is Trina being untruthful?

I think so, and here are my reasons why.

Trina Atwell is a Recovering Alcoholic

Far from the image of being a paragon of American motherhood, Trina has her own demons. Atwell is a member of Alcoholics Anonymous in her efforts to handle her addiction to alcohol, in which she should be supported.

It is Atwell's issue with alcohol, fueled by her partying lifestyle which is well documented on her Facebook website, which caused issues in the Koyama household.

Trina is a Party Girl

Visiting Atwell's Facebook pages, they are replete with photos of bar and club scenes. Trina by any standards is a good looking woman, however where was Emily while Trina was partying the night away.

Young babies need mom and dad at home to look after them.....sober!

Trina Cheated on Her Husband, Henner Chavarria

Henner Chavarria married Trina Atwell, which is why Trina sometimes hyphenates her name to Atwell-Chavarria.

Atwell left the Henner Chavarria and took up with Roy - by whom she had Emily.

After leaving Roy amidst her theatrical claims of being abused, she took up with Chavarria (by now in Costa Rica) where she left off - the pair having never divorced.

Let's be clear - Trina marries, has a baby by another man and returns with baby to her husband.

Atwell is not a model wife either.

Atwell has Abandoned another Daughter

Emily is not Atwell's first child. Atwell has another daughter in California, whom she abandoned. In addition to eluding justice in the US with the kidnapping of Emily Koyama to Costa Rica, Atwell has abandoned her eldest daughter in America.

Roy Koyama on the other hand appears to be someone else than the pill popping, Trina bashing fiend he's been painted out to be. He is the father of two sons form a previous marriage, with whom he has extensive visitation - I know because I've seen them on Skype video. They are hardly the picture of threatened children and Roy is hardly the picture of an abusive man.



Roy has also followed the law - Trina has not and she has lost in both the United States and Costa Rica. To lose in two countries legal systems is a sign you need to wake up, but in Atwell's case and those supporting her, it simply means let's find something else to do to get around this.

Meanwhile, while Trina games the system, Emily is in a foster care system in Costa Rica instead of being home with her father in America (and Roy Koyama is the one with the custody order - not Trina Atwell).

Perhaps those claiming Trina Atwell is a wronged mother should take another look.

Meanwhile, the process in Costa Rica grinds on. While the courts have so far sided with Roy Koyama and ordered the return of the child, Atwell in tandem with several women's rights groups in Costa Rica and the US, has been mounting a rear guard campaign to keep Emily in Costa Rica.

A media campaign is being waged in Costa Rica by Atwell and her supporters to persuade public opinion to keep Emily in Costa Rica. Costa Rica has so far refused to return any child to the US under the Hague Convention and Emily Koyama would be the first.

I sincerely hope that the Costa Rican authorities, and most of all ordinary Costa Ricans understand that Emily is the victim here - a victim of abuse at the hands of an alcoholic mother, who cheated on her husband, who has abandoned another child and is a fugitive from justice.

Who you and I believe between Roy Koyama and Trina Atwell is not the point - Emily has been kidnapped to Costa Rica by Trina Atwell. Emily Koyama should be returned quickly to let the American courts decide what to do with an American child, who has no connection to Costa Rica, except to have been kidnapped there by a blue-eyed, 100% homegrown American gringa.