Four-year-old Abraxas Benitez is known by her middle name, Twinkle. The child has eyes that do just that — and a smile that lights up a room.
The girl’s father, 55-year-old Ira Benitez, a Puna landscaper and plant artist, alleges Twinkle’s mother, 33-year-old Aziza Euretta Young, took the child to Mississippi in March against a judge’s order. And that has left Benitez and his mother, Gwen Benitez, a 74-year-old retired nurse and Twinkle’s grandmother, heartbroken.
“She’s 4. She’s been illegally taken out of the state, away from her dad,” Ira Benitez said last week. “And no one seems to have any sense of urgency to bring my kid home.”
Court minutes state that on March 3, Young told Hilo District Family Judge Bruce Larson that she was living in Mississippi. And Larson told Young that while she and Benitez have joint custody, the child cannot be taken out of Hawaii unless there is an agreement in writing by the parties or court approval.
“The judge asked if she understood, and she said, ‘Yes, I understand.’ And two days later she took (Twinkle),” Benitez said.
Hawaii Police Department Lt. Robert Pauole, commander of the East Hawaii Juvenile Aid Section, confirmed police investigated the case as custodial interference and violating a court order.
“She was gone before that case was even made,” Pauole said, adding police have wrapped their investigation and “routed it to the prosecutor’s office.”
And while police and prosecutors sometimes charge individuals with custodial interference, Pauole indicated it is relatively rare here for a noncustodial parent to take a child out of state against court orders.
According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, of the 27,644 cases of missing children reported to the center in 2022, 4.5% were abductions by family members.
First-degree custodial interference, which includes removing a minor from the state, is a Class C felony punishable by up to five years imprisonment. Second-degree custodial interference, which is usually a misdemeanor, can also rise to Class C felony status if the victim is taken from the state.
County Prosecutor Kelden Waltjen confirmed that the case is currently under review in his office.
“There were follow-ups that were recently completed by police,” Waltjen said, and added that “no final decision has been made” about charging Young.
“This is a felony. She took (the child) out of state. I don’t know why they haven’t charged her,” Benitez said. “And the prosecutor won’t talk to me. They won’t tell me nothing. Meanwhile, I’m here, registering my kid for school, doing everything I can to hold up my end of the deal for being a parent.”
Meanwhile, Young has missed court dates in the case on April 17 and May 15, according to court records.
Another court date in the case is scheduled for Nov. 6.
“I do expect them to give me full custody,” Benitez said. “We’re just trying to bring some more attention to potentially bring her home.”
While Benitez speaks mostly calmly about the situation facing him, his mother becomes emotional at the very mention of her granddaughter.
“My son is being denied his custody, his legal custody, his share of the custody. We haven’t heard a whisper,” Gwen Benitez said.
“I have spent over 30 years here helping the local community — mostly on Oahu, but also on the Big Island,” she continued. “And I feel no one’s standing up for me and my family. This poor 4-year-old girl, she’s the victim. She’s the real victim. She’s only known her life here — her father, her grandmother, Onekahakaha Beach. She’s a mermaid. And I’m sure she’s confused and wondering, ‘What happened to my life?’
“She’s only 4, and she can’t express herself. I’m speaking for her.”
Ira Benitez called the lack of communication from authorities “frustrating.”
“They have not kept me informed, at all,” he said. “They have promised they would call me. I asked them what do they need to charge (Young), and they said something recent, a judge’s order that says they cannot take her. I got the minutes from the court, what was said. I turned it in to them, and I have not heard nothing.
“I understand they have cases and they have priorities. But we’re talking about a 4-year-old kid here, and I think they ought to have a little more sense of urgency.”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.