She "abandoned" her son with down syndrome. Now, she's changed her mind.

The shocking story has been making headlines for weeks: A mother allegedly asked her husband to choose between her and their newborn with down syndrome, he chose the baby, and she filed for divorce.

Now, a fascinating twist has emerged.

Armenian mother Ruzan Badalyan has reportedly reconciled with her husband Samuel Forrest — and now, she’s applying for residency in his native New Zealand to help raise their son Leo.

The news, reported by NZ website stuff.co.nz, raises a few tricky questions. Questions like: What happens to the hundred of thousands of dollars strangers donated to Mr Forrester to care for little “abandoned” Leo?

As Mamamia previously reported, Ms Badalyan filed for divorce a week after Leo was born on 21 January. Leo was born in her home country of Armenia, where down syndrome is considered shameful.

“I got the ultimatum right then. She told me if I kept him then we would get a divorce,” Mr Forrest told ABC News in the US of his wife’s insistence that he give up the child.

Related content: Heartbreaking: Mother asks husband to choose between her or their baby.

After deciding to keep his son, Mr Forrest set up a GoFundMe crowdfunding page, which drew hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of donations after being promoted by celebrities like Ashton Kutcher.

Mr Forrest said he planned to use the funds to move from Armenia back to his home town of Auckland, where his family could offer him support. He said some funds would also be used to set up programs and facilities for Armenian children with down syndrome.

“With a team of experts, I am planning how to best use the funds that you have entrusted to me,” he wrote on the page as the donations rolled in. “Of course this is for Leo, but it is also for the people of Armenia. My hope is to assist and help bring a better understanding of how to cope with newborns and children with special needs.

“I think this will be Leo’s legacy to his Armenian heritage.”

Early last month, Ms Badalyan issued a statement saying she only left her son because he would have a better quality of life in his New Zealand.

“I don’t want my child to live in a country where certain stereotypes dominate the lives of people with DS and no opportunities at all,” she wrote on Facebook on 7 February. “I faced two options: to take care of the child on my own in Armenia, or to abandon my maternal instincts and extend the baby an opportunity to enjoy a decent life with his father in New Zealand. I went for the second option.”

Related content: Surrogate baby Gammy was abandoned by his Australian parents.

Mr Forrest also defended his estranged wife, writing on the GoFundMePage: “Ruzan should not be the target of all of the frustrations that this situation has created… Our paths may be moving in different directions, but she is Leo’s mother and I still feel a great deal of love for her.”

Now Badalyan and Forrester are back together, after deciding not to add their final signatures to the required paperwork, stuff.co.nz reports.

The website cites an unnamed source as saying the pair “want to raise [Leo] in New Zealand but it all depends on whether New Zealand Immigration will find it legitimate”.

“Despite all the negative media and emotional struggle, she wanted to go against the cultural norm and embrace the son,” the source added.

It’s unclear what’s going to happen to the more than $500,000 was raised on the GoFundMe page, but a Gofundme spokesperson told Stuff.co.nz they could not comment on whether the couple had made false representations to donors.

“If donors have any concerns about this campaign, they are welcome to contact us at any time and request a refund,” she said.

Related content: 15 kids with down syndrome tell a mum what to expect from her baby.

Meanwhile, further details have emerged about Mr Forrest’s personal history, with Daily Mail reporting the man was raised as part of religious group Exclusive Brethren, which former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has described as “an extremist cult and sect”.

“They split families and I am deeply concerned about their impact on communities across Australia,” Mr Rudd said of the group in 2007.

Mr Forrest was ostracised by the group after his divorce from first marriage, from which he has four more children including a girl with down syndrome, Daily Mail reports.

“All his extended family are also members of the Exclusive Brethren and are still forbidden by their religion to have any contact with him,’ a source told Daily Mail Australia. “It was one of the reasons why he left in the first place and went to Armenia. He had no contact with his children and saw no future for himself in New Zealand. It was all very sad.”