A boy who was separated from his father at age three is now ten years old. Over the past seven years, the father has only seen his son’s face in person for about one minute when they accidentally crossed paths on a train in South Korea in January 2023.
Despite Hague Convention child abduction rulings from courts in both South Korea and the United States ordering the child to be returned to the U.S., father Jae-hyuk (Jay) Sung remains separated from his son, Brian Sung. Repeated failures in enforcing court orders have sparked growing controversy over the effectiveness of international child return judgments.
The conflict began in June 2019. According to Sung, while undergoing divorce proceedings, his wife, Cho, took their three-year-old son to South Korea contrary to an agreement made by the couple and failed to return to the United States.
Sung immediately initiated return procedures under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. In December of that year, a U.S. court granted Sung ultimate custody and ordered the child’s return. The Seoul Family Court in South Korea also ruled that Brian should be sent back to the U.S. The legal judgments became final after appeals and re-appeals by the mother’s side were all dismissed.
The real problem lay in the enforcement phase. According to Sung, the South Korean court issued a total of 14 child delivery orders, and actual enforcement was attempted eight times, but the child was never handed over. Although the court imposed three fines on Cho and issued two detention orders, none of these measures led to the child’s return.
As time passed, the estrangement between the father and son deepened. Phone and video calls were cut off in late 2019. During execution processes and communications with the U.S. Embassy, Brian reportedly stated that he had memories of talking to his father, but could no longer remember his face.
Currently, the child’s exact living location remains unconfirmed. Sung stated that Daegu police visited the registered address but could not verify actual residency.
Because the child return ruling has not been enforced for a prolonged period, the issue has escalated into a diplomatic agenda between South Korea and the U.S. In its recently published 2026 Annual Report on International Parental Child Abduction, the U.S. Department of State classified South Korea as a Hague Convention “non-compliant” country for the fifth consecutive year since 2022.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio also announced that visa restrictions could be applied to foreign government officials, judges, and law enforcement officers who intentionally obstruct the implementation of the convention. Meanwhile, the King County Superior Court in Washington state has continued to apply pressure, issuing orders for Cho to appear regarding contempt of court proceedings.
Sung has left approximately 280 video messages for his son on YouTube.
He stated, “Even if the child returns, I have no intention of cutting off his relationship with his mother,” adding, “I hope we can continue a healthy relationship with the help of professionals.” He continued, “I want Brian to know that his dad is always waiting here and has never forgotten him.”
Cho shared her position with local media on the 11th, claiming that Sung had refused visitation rights with his son starting in October 2019, that visitation promoted by the Ministry of Justice from December 2024 to April of last year fell through due to Sung’s refusal, and that a defamation complaint filed by Sung against her last October was dismissed by prosecutors and police. She added, “Sung’s position is one-sided and has many parts that differ from the truth,” stating that she plans to address the situation through legal action for the sake of the child.
