Custody Battle for Surviving Children of Amazon Plane Crash Victims

The siblings, ranging in age from 1 to 13 years, will have to stay in the hospital for at least two to three weeks to recover. Colombian child protection services use that period to speak extensively with relatives to determine who should take care of them after their mother died in the May 1 crash.

Astrid Cáceres, head of the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare, said in an interview with BLU radio that a social worker has been assigned to the children at the request of the maternal grandparents. “We are going to talk, investigate and familiarize ourselves with the situation,” said Cáceres. “The most important thing right now is the health of the children, not only physically but also emotionally,” she said.

One of the things the agency is investigating is an allegation of domestic violence. Last Sunday, grandfather Narciso Mucutuy suggested his daughter was beaten by her partner Manuel Ranoque, the father of two of the four children. Grandpa Mucutuy told reporters that the children hid in the woods when a fight broke out between the parents.

Father Ranoque admitted to reporters that there were problems at home, but he called it a private matter. Asked if he had ever assaulted his wife, Ranoque said: ,,Verbally, sometimes. Physically very little. We had more verbal fights.” Ranoque said he was not allowed to see the two oldest children in the hospital. Cáceres declined to comment on why.

The children were traveling with their mother from the Amazon village of Araracuara to the city of San Jose del Guaviare on May 1 when the pilot of the Cessna single-engine propeller plane reported an emergency due to engine failure. The plane crashed a short time later, killing the three adults.

The children survived in the rainforest for more than a month. They were found on Friday and taken by helicopter to the capital Bogota and then to a military hospital where they have to regain their strength.