Utah 10-Year-old Reunited with Biological Mother After Transgender Parent and Partner Allegedly Kidnapped Child to Cuba

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Two Utah persons are in federal custody and charged in a federal criminal complaint of International Parental Kidnapping. The pair is accused of allegedly skipping out on a planned camping trip to Canada with a shared custody child and instead took the 10-year-old to Havana, Cuba, without the biological mother's knowledge or court approval.

Rose Inessa-Ethington aka Eri Ethington, 42, and Blue Inessa-Ethington, aka Carly Ann Crosby, 32, both of Cache County, Utah, were deported from Cuba on Monday with the assistance of the FBI. Upon landing in the United States, the two defendants appeared in court for an arraignment in Richmond, Virginia, and will be transported to the District of Utah at a later date for the remainder of their court case at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.

According to court documents, on March 28, 2026, a 10-year-old child was supposed to be traveling by car to Calgary in Alberta, Canada, for a planned camping trip with the minor victim's biological father Rose Inessa-Ethington, Rose's partner Blue and Blue's 3-year-old child. But the group never arrived at their hotel in Calgary or the campground they planned to stay at from March 29 - April 2, 2026. As alleged, the group had not been heard from since March 28, 2026, when the 10-year-old told the biological mother via telephone they arrived in Canada. The biological mother shares custody of the 10-year-old with Rose, her former spouse. On April 3, 2026, the child was supposed to be returned to the biological mother after the camping trip to Calgary, according to the court ordered custody agreement, which did not occur.

According to court documents, on March 29, 2026, the group crossed the U.S. Canada Border and took a flight from Vancouver, Canada to Mexico City, Mexico. On April 1, 2026, the group took another flight from Merida, Mexico to Havana, Cuba. Mexican immigration authorities confirmed their arrival and departures utilizing their U.S. Passports. As alleged in court documents, interviews with the 10-year-old's family provided significant concerns for the minor's well-being, as the child was born male, however, identified as a female child, which family members largely believed to be due to manipulation by Rose. Concerns existed that the child was transported to Cuba for gender reassignment surgery prior to puberty. On April 13, 2026, a Utah State Court ordered the 10-year-old to be returned to the child's mother immediately and granted the mother exclusive custody of the child. On April 16, 2026, Cuban law enforcement located the group in Cuba.

"We are grateful to law enforcement for working swiftly to return the child to the biological mother," said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak for the District of Utah.

"Our priority in every parental kidnapping case is the safety and well-being of the child," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls of the Salt Lake City FBI. "This case reflects the strength of partnerships in locating victims, supporting reunification, and ensuring accountability."

The case is being investigated by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office. The U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Services and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations in Havana played a key role in recovering the minor victim safely, along with the FBI's Mexico City Law Enforcement Attache Office.

Assistant United States Attorney Carlos Esqueda for the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

A complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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