The attorney for the mother a 3-year-old girl who was safely returned on Tuesday after being reported missing in South Miami claimed his client was wrongfully accused of kidnapping her daughter. Authorities on Saturday issued a Florida Missing Child Alert after Shea Eminhizer was reported missing by her father, Jeremy Eminhizer. He alleged that the toddler’s mother, Christine Betancourt, had taken the child. On Tuesday, Betancourt turned over her daughter to police and spoke to 7News. “The father filed a false missing persons report. It’s actually what happened. He knew I was leaving on vacation, and he filed a false missing persons report to force me into this situation and to punish me,” said Betancourt said in an interview. According to South Miami Police, Jeremy had not seen or heard from his daughter since June 24, and he was granted full custody of Shea. Authorities also reported that Betancourt was ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation. However, Betancourt’s attorneys refuted these claims, stating they are unsure how this information was obtained and why it was released by authorities. Betancourt provided her side of the story during a news conference held Wednesday. “It’s all a malicious act to punish me, to inflict more harm,” she said. She emphasized that her daughter was never missing and never in danger. She said they were on a trip to Disney World. “I’ve been appalled by the process, that they would escalate the alert so that it became to what it was,” said Betancourt. She said she will file a complaint with the South Miami Police Department over the way the situation was handled. Attorneys emphasized that the situation is a misunderstanding stemming from an ongoing custody battle between the parents. “Listen, are there things that happened in the case, on both sides, that weren’t everybody’s best look? Yes. Welcome to divorce,” said Ken Gordon, Jeremy’s attorney. The father’s lawyer said that after a judge issued an order giving Jeremy permission to pick up his daughter, he couldn’t reach Betancourt, so the missing child alert went out. “What my client did, him and another individual, went to these police agencies with the order to show them, is exactly what you were supposed to do,” said Gordon. The parents’ lawyers offered conflicting accounts of what took place and why, as the custody battle continues. “She complied with the court order yesterday, reluctantly, but she complied with the court order, and we’re now in the situation where we are waiting for an appellate court to, hopefully, reverse that court order,” said Sam Rabin, Betancourt’s attorney. “It’s tragic. It’s not that I see her without empathy for the mother, either, but once again, when you have disputes in our civilization, the rule of law is hopefully what we are going to rely on,” said Gordon. The child remains with the father, as more hearings in this custody battle are expected. Officials with South Miami Police defended their actions as to how they handled the case and said they will not be offering any further comment.