Kids missing after custody battle, mom says

By Gan Mathews, NEWS 9

An Oklahoma mother is desperate to see her three children again, except she doesn't know where they are.

That's why Trisha Hartline has posted pictures of her children Erick, Jessiekah, and Taylor on the Web site of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. She hopes someone will spot them.

The missing children story started with a divorce, a custody arrangement, abuse allegations, and now, according to a judge, the father's absconding with the children.

There's still a legal side to this story, but it also has moved into cyberspace.

Hartline last saw the children May 18 when she delivered them to her ex-husband, Robert Cook, at a McDonald's in Chickasha as part of the custody arrangement.

Since then, a judge has ruled that the father "absconded" with the children, and has granted Hartline custody of the kids.

But where is Robert Cook? We went by his home in Alex. He wasn't home. No one was home at his mother's home next door, though there were lots of children's toys lying around.

But Cook has his own Web space, with pictures of the children and a statement: "My kids aren't missing. They're here safe with me."

If you know the whereabouts of the children, call the Alex Police Department at 405-224-0984.