A father has made an emotional plea for his former wife to return their two young sons after she allegedly disappeared with them following a bitter custody battle.
Ben Baier, 43, says he has not seen five-year-old Blaine and three-year-old Nathaniel since March, when he traveled to Heathrow to collect the boys after they had spent time with their mother, Nishika Samaratunga, in London.
Instead of being reunited with his children, Ben was handed court papers by a lawyer containing what he describes as “false allegations” of abuse.
The American financier had been awarded full custody of the boys the previous October, and they had been living with him near Denver, Colorado.
Samaratunga, 34, is a British citizen and heiress from a prominent Sri Lankan tea dynasty. An international manhunt has since been launched, but Ben says he does not even know which country she and the children are currently in.
‘I Have No Idea What She’s Telling Them’
Ben says his biggest concern now is the safety and wellbeing of his sons.
He does not know whether Blaine is attending school, whether Nathaniel is in nursery or whether either child has proper access to medical care.
US court documents published last month reportedly accused Samaratunga of putting the children’s physical and emotional wellbeing at risk by taking them away.
The judge also said the mother had made “false allegations of every sort of abuse… imaginable” against Ben, describing them as claims that were “simply invented for nefarious and bad-faith purposes.”
Ben, meanwhile, says he has struggled emotionally with being separated from his children.
“I allow myself days just to break down, cry and clean out the gutters,” he said.
He added that he tries not to look at photographs and videos of his sons too frequently because his therapist has warned that doing so can feel like “emotional cutting.”
Ben says the only indication he has received that his children are still alive came when Samaratunga posted a video of Blaine on Sri Lankan news media, showing the boy crying into the camera.
“It sounds more like a cry for me than him being distraught,” Ben said.
“I have no idea what she’s telling them or what she’s doing to them, mentally or emotionally, or how she’s painting me.”
A Whirlwind Romance That Ended in a Custody Battle
Ben first met Samaratunga, a finance-industry head hunter and former model, during a yachting holiday around the British Virgin Islands in December 2019.
The heiress had previously crossed paths with King Charles when he was still the Prince of Wales. Her uncle, Chris Nonis, is a former Sri Lankan high commissioner to the UK.
Their relationship began long-distance, with Ben living in the US and Samaratunga based in London.
The couple grew closer during the Covid period, with Ben briefly moving to the UK before they relocated to Colorado. They married in January 2021.
After their sons were born, however, the relationship deteriorated.
In September 2024, Samaratunga asked Ben for space, prompting him to stay at a friend’s house. Later that month, she filed for divorce and made a series of allegations against him, including claims of domestic violence and abuse involving the children.
Ben strongly denies the allegations.
He says police later determined that the claims did not amount to a crime or child abuse.
Ben Was Initially Limited to One Hour a Week With His Sons
For around 10 months, Ben says he was permitted to see his children for only one supervised hour each week.
He was eventually awarded custody after Samaratunga returned to the UK and left the boys with her mother, according to Ben.
He says he had been unable to obtain his sons’ records for months because of the allegations. When he finally received them, he claims he discovered that Blaine had missed significant amounts of school, while Nate had not started pre-school.
He also says neither child had been able to continue behavioral therapy for their autism.
According to reports, a US court had previously expressed concern that Samaratunga could abduct the children. An order therefore allowed her to have contact with them in London while Ben retained their passports.
Under court orders, Ben took the boys to London to visit their mother for two weeks over Christmas last year. He then returned with them again in March.
But when he arrived at Heathrow on March 29 to take Blaine and Nathaniel home, he was served with the court papers instead.
Ben remained in the UK for a month searching for his sons and working with lawyers ahead of a hearing in April. Samaratunga did not attend the hearing, he says.
Her London apartment has since been left empty, and Ben fears she may be receiving assistance while remaining in hiding.
‘Every Day’ Increases Concern for the Boys
Ben’s legal team is now pursuing High Court proceedings as the search for the children continues.
Amy Rowe, a partner at Hunters Law LLP representing Baier, stressed the urgency of finding the boys.
“The court has rightly recognised the deeply harmful impact of abduction on Blaine and Nathaniel,” Rowe said.
“These are two very young, vulnerable children and every day that they remain missing increases the concern for their welfare.”
She added: “It is imperative that they are found and returned home safely as soon as possible.”
For Ben, the legal battle has become secondary to one immediate hope: seeing his two sons again and knowing that they are safe.