American Man Faces Legal Battle in Italy Over Custody of Child Conceived with Italian Lover in Sorrento

A wealthy American man must return a baby he abducted from Italy after he got his Sorrento lover pregnant, a judge has ruled in US federal court. 

Eric Nichols, aged 50, had to give back his baby son to the mother, Claudia Ciampa, aged 46, after he grabbed the child and brought him to the United States for 82 days.

Documents from the court, as viewed by DailyMail.com, outline how their romantic relationship that began in a charming Neapolitan seaside town in 2011 turned sour, leading to a heartbreaking international custody dispute over a decade later.

According to the ruling by US District Judge David O. Carter, Nichols and Ciampa met in a cozy café in her idyllic hometown of Piano di Sorrento, where the American immigrant had relocated to work as an English teacher.

The pair enjoyed a whirlwind romance for one year in 2011, until they separated and Ciampa eventually married another man, Luigi Porzio, nicknamed ‘Gigi’ in the court papers. 

Ciampa, who has three more children between the ages of 16 and 18, separated from Gigi, and reconnected with Nichols years later in Sorrento, where he got her pregnant with her fourth child. 

The couple moved to Ohio, where Ciampa gave birth to their son, Ethan, on February 13, 2024, before all three moved back to Italy the following month. 

According to court papers, their relationship quickly became ‘strained’ to the point that they parted ways again and Nichols had visitation hours with the baby. 

A wealthy American man must return a baby he abducted from Italy after he got his Sorrento lover pregnant, a judge has ruled in US federal court. Eric Nichols, 50, has been ordered to return his infant son to the mother, Claudia Ciampa, 46

Court papers seen by DailyMail.com detail how their fairytale relationship in a beachside Neapolitan town back in 2011 descended into acrimony – culminating in a heart-wrenching international custody battle more than a decade later (Pictured: Ciampa with the baby)

Nichols and Ciampa met in a quaint cafe in her picturesque hometown of Piano di Sorrento (pictured), where the American expat had moved to teach English, court papers state

But tensions came to a head on August 30 last year, when Nichols failed to return with the baby – whisking Ethan away to California via London. 

Nichols initially lied about where he was, telling Ciampa he had taken the boy to ‘local beaches, zoos, and water park’. 

Ciampa ‘pleaded’ with Nichols to return the baby ‘so that she could breastfeed him as it was causing her pain’,  Judge Carter’s ruling states. 

But Nichols refused to return with Ethan, as shown by text messages the parents shared during the 82-day separation. 

‘Eric, when are you bringing him back? We need to see each other and hug and kiss. I miss him so much’, Ciampa wrote in one text.  

She sent several more with increasing urgency. 

‘Please Eric bring [Baby Ethan] back as soon as possible, [Baby Ethan] needs his mother and I have the right to be with him too,’ Ciampa said, before later adding: ‘I can’t sleep, you are torturing me.’ 

‘Hey Eric, please come back with [Baby Ethan],’ she pleaded again in a later exchange. 

‘I can’t sleep, I have palpitations. I beg you to come back. We can agree so that you can be [satisfied], and [Baby Ethan] can grow up with a loving father and a loving mother too.’ 

Nichols (pictured) was working as an English teacher in Piano di Sorrento when he met Ciampa

Ciampa was separated from her baby for 82 days after Nichols whisked him away to the US

Nichols has been ordered to return the baby to his mother after he took him to California

But Nichols didn’t relent, forcing Ciampa to file a petition accusing him of abduction. 

She was eventually granted custody of Ethan under an emergency order filed in November 2024, and gained full custody under the final ruling this month. 

The Sheriff’s Department of Orange County, California, served Nichols with papers for abduction in November. 

He hit back – saying Ciampa had ‘promised’ him they were going to move to America, and even accusing her of domestic violence, having no attachment to the baby, and trying to kill herself and all of her children, including Ethan. 

These accusations were disproven in court, per the judge’s ruling, and the judge said a video Nichols submitted as ‘evidence’ of abuse actually showed him ‘antagonizing’ her while ‘aggressively’ recording her. 

Judge Carter said Nichols believed the US court system would act in his favor and that the case epitomized the need for an impartial international court. 

‘This case exemplifies the very conduct the Hague Convention sought to deter – the abduction of a child from their home country by a parent seeking a more sympathetic court,’ Carter wrote.

‘Father took a breastfeeding infant across international borders, believing that his American citizenship would grant him a more favorable forum. 

‘Meanwhile, Ms. Ciampa endured 82 days of heart wrenching separation from Baby Ethan. This Court will not serve as a refuge for such actions.’

Heartwarming video posted showed the moment Ciampa returned to Italy with her baby boy, surrounded by a gaggle of press at the airport.