Adoption of sisters goes wrong for Mayer couple

CARVER COUNTY, MN – Maria and Carl Melichar of Mayer attempted to adopt two sisters from northern India, the Star Tribune reported.

In court papers that paved her way to Minnesota, Komal is described as a 12-year-old girl from northern India, eligible for adoption in the United States.

She liked to assemble puzzles and briefly attended fifth grade, but the 112-pound orphan displayed a violent streak that soon left the Melichars wondering if they were told the truth about the two Indian siblings they spent $30,000 trying to adopt.

Within months of their arrival, and before the adoption became final, Komal confessed: She was 21. Her younger sister, Shallu, admitted she was 15, not 11 as advertised. The sisters said they were told to lie about their ages and backgrounds by orphanage officials and an India-based representative for Crossroads Adoption Services of Edina, which handled the failed placements.

At 21, Komal wouldn’t have been a candidate for adoption. In fact, she wouldn’t have qualified for an orphan visa to the United States. Under the rules, foreign children must be under 16 for adoption proceedings to begin.

A US immigration judge ordered the sisters sent back to India in July 2008 for visa fraud, after medical tests confirmed the age discrepancies. It appears to be the first time the U.S. government has expelled orphans under such circumstances, according to the Star Tribune.

Komal and Shallu now live at a boarding school, an Indian official said. They could not be reached by the Star Tribune.

The Melichars claim that Crossroads put them in an impossible position as guardians of a resentful young adult who didn’t wish to remain in the United States and who grew increasingly abusive in their household. They are suing the agency for fraud and negligence, seeking more than $50,000 in damages.

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