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rian.com.ua State border guards have prevented an attempt by a U.S. citizen to illegally remove a 12-year-old girl from Ukraine, the press service of the Ukrainian State Border Service reported on Oct. 10.

The border guards intervened when a quarrel broke out between the child and the woman accompanying her. The girl claimed that the 40-year-old woman, her adoptive mother, was taking her out of the country against her wishes and had physically abused her. Through a translator, the woman claimed she was not insisting that the girl travel with her, and that the girl was mentally disturbed.

After making inquiries, the border guards established that the adoption decision of an Odesa court had been illegal – it was based on false information and the brother of the girl had not been informed or given his approval to the adoption, as required by the law.

Kyiv region prosecutor's office has been informed of the case, as have the police and the children's service of the Kyiv state regional administration. The girl has been placed by the children's service in a temporary hospice, and the U.S. woman remains in Ukraine.