Florida citizen William Lake and his former wife divorced in Escambia County in 2001, with shared custody of their daughter, Mary. Shortly thereafter, Mary's mother, Nadia Shapovalova, secretly and unlawfully relocated with Mary outside the Court's jurisdiction. Sadly, Mr. Lake has spent the last 4-5 years searching for his daughter. As a result of Mary's abduction, the Escambia County Circuit Court has issued contempt orders for her mother's actions and awarded sole custody to Mr. Lake. Approximately a year ago, with the aid of local law enforcement and the State Department, Mary was found to be living with her mother in Osaka, Japan.

Mary's father has been unsuccessful in obtaining the assistance needed to have Mary returned to Florida. For reasons unknown, the Japanese authorities will not cooperate with U.S. authorities in locating Mary and returning her to the U.S. Apparently, at the heart of the problem is Japan's opposition to signing the 1980 Hague Convention on International Child Abduction. There is a history of cases in which one parent abducted their child and fled to Japan specifically for protection from the Convention. As a result of Japan's refusal to honor the Convention, parent's of American children who were abducted and taken to Japan, are apparently without recourse or assistance in reuniting with their children.

We understand that Mary Lake, a minor child and United States citizen, was secretly and unlawfully removed from the jurisdiction of the Florida courts and has not seen her natural father, and legal custodian,in over four years. We are respectfully requesting any and all United States and Florida state government agencies take any and all action possible to locate and secure United States citizen Mary Lake and return her to her father, William Lake, in Pensacola, Florida.