Missouri parents should know that a non-custodial parent’s child support obligations do not end when the child becomes an adult. Unpaid child support is still considered to be an obligation on the deadbeat parent.

It can be difficult to get parents to pay, especially if they move out of state — or out of the country. But one former Missouri man may be ordered to pay nearly $165,000 in back child support after he pleaded guilty to fleeing the U.S. rather than financially support his son.

The man was ordered to pay $1,500 a month in child support back in 1996. In January 2005, the father moved to Thailand to work for a hotel business there. Starting at least at that point, if not before, his son did not receive any child support, authorities say.

The father stayed out of the U.S., perhaps to avoid capture. In one exception, he snuck across the Canadian border to attend his daughter’s wedding. Then, in February 2012, he was arrested after trying to enter the country from LAX airport.

In mid-February, he pleaded guilty to evading his child support obligations. When sentenced, he could be ordered to pay off the debt, plus a fine of up to $250,000 and up to two years in federal prison.

For parents who are dealing with a child support order they cannot afford, an adjustment may be possible. For parents who can’t get the child support they are owed. A family law attorney may be able to help those in either situation.

Source: KYTV-TV, “Springfield man admits fleeing to Thailand to avoid paying child support,” Brian Vandenberg, Feb. 12, 2014