The child, a boy, was 8 1/4 at the date of the alleged wrongful removal. He had lived in Spain all of his life. The parents were separated. Under a binding agreement the mother had care of the child, the father access. On 6 December 1993 the mother took the child to Scotland without the father’s consent.
On 27 January 1994 the Spanish Central Authority issued an application for the return of the child.