TOKYO, Japan (CNN)  -- Had this custody drama played out in the United States, Christopher Savoie might be considered a hero -- snatching his two little children back from an ex-wife who defied the law and ran off with them. A Tennessee court awarded Christopher Savoie custody of his son, Isaac, and daughter, Rebecca. But this story unfolds 7,000 miles away in the Japanese city of Fukuoka, where the U.S. legal system holds no sway. And here, Savoie sits in jail, charged with the abduction of minors. And his Japanese ex-wife -- a fugitive in the United States for taking his children from Tennessee -- is considered the victim.
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Ex-wife's attorney says dad had other legal options besides grabbing kids
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American dad tries to snatch children from ex-wife who took them to Japan
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She is a fugitive in Tennessee, but has broken no law in Japan
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Father, who has legal custody in U.S., charged in Japan with abduction
Concerned, Savoie called his ex-wife's father in @placeholder, who told him not to worry.