Report: Internet Twins Awarded to Father

Jan. 24, 2001 -- The case of the "Internet Twins" was, at first, a transatlantic tug-of-war between two sets of parents, one on each side of the Atlantic.

Now, it's apparently become a free-for all.

A St. Louis judge has reportedly awarded the twins to their biological father, just days after their birth mother, Tranda Wecker told the public she also wants the children back.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported today that Associate St. Louis Circuit Judge Jack Garvey had awarded custody of the twin girls to their biological father, Aaron Wecker of Arnold, Mo.

Wecker alleges in court documents that the birth mother neglected the 7-month-old twins by trying to sell them on the Internet, twice, for profit, according to the report.

The report says Wecker also accused the birth mother of "failing to report to me on the whereabouts of the children for weeks at a time, subjecting the twins to illegal activities and underhanded and shady doings."

The custody order is effective until at least the next court hearing, set for Feb. 14, and the birth mother has been prohibited from coming within 100 feet of the twins, said the report.

No Change Overseas

The order has not had an effect in North Wales, where the children are in the custody of local authorities.

The girls, named Kimberley and Belinda, were seized from Judith and Alan Kilshaw, the British couple who paid a fee to an Internet broker for the American twins.

The twins were seized under an emergency custody order last week after a California couple, Richard and Vickie Allen ,said the girls were taken away while they were in the process of adopting them.

The Kilshaws formally adopted the babies in Arkansas.

The Allens said they paid approximately $6,000 for the little girls, but they were tricked into giving them up when the Kilshaws outbid them with $12,000 and took the babies to Britain.

On Tuesday, Justice Andrew Kirkwood of the Birmingham High Court today said the decision was made in an attempt to arrive at what was best for the welfare of the twins.

"It is not just English law that I have to consider," he said, "but the positions also in one, two or even three states in the United States of America." he said.

He also added that the Kilshaws voluntarily agreed not to talk to the press about what had gone on at the hearing, which was not open to the public.

Legal Tests

The case has hastened the British government's plans to tighten laws covering the adoption of children abroad.

It will become a criminal offense, punishable by up to three months in prison, to bring children adopted overseas into the country without the approval of British authorities.

Meanwhile, Internet service providers in Britain were being warned it was against British law to host unlicensed Internet adoption sites.

Under Justice Kirkwood's ruling, the children will remain in the care of social workers until the courts eventually decide who the children's parents are. A lengthy court battle could involve the American courts as the children are still American citizens.

ABCNEWS' Mike Lee in London and Reuters contributed to this report.