In the small town of Arkoma, Oklahoma, a story of a missing child began to unfold that would eventually span continents and become far more complex than it first appeared. On January 19, 2021, three-year-old Zynlea Ryan Hollenbeck was last seen in her hometown. At the time of her disappearance, she was described as a little girl with sandy hair and hazel eyes, standing about 3 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 37 pounds.
The initial report to law enforcement, specifically the Arkoma Police Department, stated that Zynlea was believed to have been abducted by a non-custodial parent. This report launched an investigation and placed her name and story among the lists of missing children, a heart-wrenching situation for any family and community.
As the search for the young girl continued, the narrative of her disappearance grew more complicated. It was revealed that the case was not a straightforward abduction but the result of a deeply contentious parental custody dispute. While initial reports in the United States suggested her father, Thomas Hollenbeck, had full custody, later information indicated that Zynlea had been taken out of the country by her mother. For a period of time, Zynlea was living with her mother, Shannon Tracy, in the European country of Montenegro. According to reports from the mother, she had been granted full custody by U.S. courts before she left the country with her daughter in January 2021.
The case took another dramatic turn in August of 2024. While living in Montenegro with her mother, six-year-old Zynlea was taken by her father. Her mother reported to local police that the child's father had taken her during a scheduled visit and did not return her. It was alleged that he then crossed the border into Albania illegally with Zynlea before making his way back to the United States. Subsequent reports from late 2025 indicate Zynlea remains in the sole custody of her father in the U.S. The case has evolved from a local missing person report into a complex international custody battle. The overview of the case reveals a distressing journey for a young child caught between her parents, with conflicting custody claims and international interventions that have left her separated from her mother, who has only been allowed limited, supervised video calls.Last Seen: Jan 19, 2021
