Uncle Gets Custody of Girl Taken to Italy
A 4-year-old girl at the center of a custody battle involving her Italian father--who is also charged with kidnapping her--has been ordered turned over to the father’s brother.
Santina Ventre has been living in Southern California with her maternal grandparents since they were awarded custody by a court in Italy seven months ago.
But Los Angeles County Superior Court Commissioner Victor Reichman ruled Thursday that the girl would be better off staying at the Las Vegas home of her uncle Gianfranco Ventre. Reichman cited what he said was the intense hatred Santina’s grandfather holds for the girl’s father, Carlo Ventre.
Santina’s mother, Toni Dykstra, died during an argument with Ventre at his home near Rome in 1998. Ventre, who alleges self defense, has not been charged in her death.
The grandparents were given alternate weekend visits with Santina.
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