Relatives say Tanika was not kidnapped

Relatives of Tanika Seaton, the schoolgirl who was reported missing by her father Keith Seaton, insisted yesterday the girl was sent to the United States by her father. They claimed that Seaton contacted Tanika’s mother, who is living in the United States, and told her he was unable to take care of Tanika. Arrangements were then put in place for Tanika to be re-united with her mother. According to Tanika’s relatives, the child was told she would start a new life in the United States with her mother. “She is not missing and was not kidnapped by her mother,” said the child’s relatives yesterday. Seaton told Newsday on Tuesday his daughter had been kidnapped and was being kept against her will in the United States.