MONTREAL -- Canadian customs officials say they are on the lookout for parental abductions during the holiday season, as statistics show this time of celebration and family travel is conducive to kidnapping attempts by parents - particularly involving children visiting foreign countries.

It's a phenomenon that may be little known to the general public, but quite familiar to employees of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), as well as for organizations such as the Missing Children's Network.

"Currently there are as many mothers as fathers who decide to leave or return to their native country, for example, with their child but without the consent of the other parent," Pina Arcamone, director of the Missing Children's Network, told The Canadian Press.

Arcamone also noted that parental abduction is the most common type of abduction in Canada.

The scenario is almost always the same in these cases, Arcamone said: a parent who is dissatisfied with the conditions of care of his or her child decides to take justice into their own hands. The child then goes on vacation with a parent, but does not return on the scheduled date.

"Every year, we find missing children (at airports and border crossings)," Véronique Lalime, spokesperson for the CBSA, said in a recent interview with The Canadian Press. "Our agents are really on the lookout. When they see children, they pay special attention to make sure they meet child-care requirements when it comes to travel."

And it is not only men who are in the crosshairs of customs officials, stressed Arcamone.

"We see that it concerns as many mothers as fathers," Arcamone saiid. "You really have to be on the lookout and not minimize or trivialize things if a child is abducted by his mother."

Fortunately, the situation ends well for most children, but the other parent's anxiety can last a long time.

"I would say that in the vast majority of cases, the children are found," Arcamone said. "It may take a few hours, but sometimes it takes days and months in some cases.

"In most cases ... we locate the children and send them home before there are serious consequences."

Arcamone added that the process can be more complicated to repatriate a child from a country which is not a signatory to the Hague Convention on Protection of Children.

The Canada Border Services Agency is launching an appeal to all travellers who are accompanying children this holiday season, a busy period at airports and land border crossings.

"When people have shared custody, it is important that they have the other parent's legal documents and consent letters if both parents are not traveling with the children," Lalime said. "This is something to keep in mind and which will facilitate or delay a border crossing."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 27, 2019.