Miranda Lambert family helped spark rescue of kidnapped childhood friend

Fox News reported that Lauren Burns was abducted by her father, Ali Bayan, from Dallas to Jordan in 1987 when she was seven years old. Bayan picked up Burns during Halloween weekend while she was wearing a cheerleader costume, claiming the trip was a surprise that her mother, Cathy Mahone, knew about. After weeks passed without contact with her mother, Burns stated she believed she might never return home. [1]

The family of country music singer Miranda Lambert helped spark the rescue operation that eventually brought Burns back to the United States. Fox News reported that Bayan refused to let Burns speak with her mother, who then worked to secure the girl's return from overseas. [1]

Lambert is an American country music singer and songwriter who released her debut album independently in 2001 after being born in Longview, Texas. She formed the group Pistol Annies in 2011 alongside Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley, and she has won three Grammy Awards including Best Country Album for Platinum in 2015 and Wildcard in 2021. As FTMQ News reported earlier, international kidnappings have drawn military and rescue responses in other recent cases worldwide. [2][3][4]