Christian Teen Flees Home, Says She Fears Honor Killing by Muslim Father

Keeping Rifqa Safe

The pastors' first move was to call an attorney, several of them, actually.

Teenager Rifqa Bary, right, fled to Florida and told authorities that her Muslim father, left, threatened to kill her for converting to Christianity.

(ABC News)

"No one really knew what to do," Lorenz said, pointing out that Rifqa was not only a minor, but that she had crossed state lines and she wasn't even a U.S. citizen.

Blake Lorenz said Rifqa arrived late at night after a two-day trip. The next morning, the couple called police for advice, but did not tell them Rifqa's name. They did report Rifqa's presence two weeks later, he said, when the couple realized the teen's parents had reported her missing.

Lorenz said he fears Rifqa is "definitely not safe." He pointed to other suspected honor killings in Muslim families, including two Texas sisters who were murdered by their Muslim father Jan. 1, 2008, in what some believed to be religion-fueled rage over the girls' Western ways.

Rifqa's father is now in Florida trying to bring his daughter home. A woman who answered the phone at the Bary home in Ohio said she was a relative, but declined to answer any questions.

Bary told WFTV that there was no truth to his daughter's claims.

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Lorenz said he called the abuse hotline Friday. Elizabeth Arenas, a public information officer for the Florida Department of Children and Families, said Rifqa is now in foster care, she said, while Florida officials work with Ohio child services to investigate the teen's claims.

"We just want to be sure she's going to be safe," Arenas said.

Rifqa, her father, Lorenz and Florida DCF officials appeared in court Monday where a judge ordered her to remain in state custody for now. Rifqa is being represented by a lawyer with the Alliance Defense Fund, a legal group that takes on conservative Christian causes.

"When she saw her dad yesterday, she was scared to death," Blake Lorenz said. "She literally believes she's going to be killed."

As for Bary, he said, "I don't want to make him out to be a monster, because I'm sure he's not."

Arenas, who said Bary has been cooperative with Florida DCF officials, said the state had recommended the teen be placed in Ohio state custody. But a judge Monday granted emergency jurisdiction to the Florida DCF, meaning Rifqa will remain in the state's care at least until the next hearing, scheduled for Aug. 21.

Her parents were also given supervised visitation rights, but only at the discretion of their daughter. Arenas said she was unsure if Rifqa had met with her parents since the hearing.

"I don't want to see my father," she told WFTV.