A girl who members of the family imagine was the toddler who was kidnapped by a babysitter 51 years in the past has been reunited together with her household in Fort Price, in a gathering stuffed with long-overdue hugs and joyful tears.
Melissa Highsmith was 22 months previous when she was kidnapped by a purported babysitter in 1971.
The Fort Price Star-Telegram reported that she lived in Fort Price most of her life as Melanie Brown and didn’t know she was kidnapped till her organic father, Jeffrie Highsmith, submitted DNA to 23andMe and realized that he was a match to Brown's youngsters.
The household stated in a information launch that they labored with an newbie genealogist to assist interpret the DNA outcomes and mine public information to seek out Melissa, who reunited together with her mother and father and two of her siblings this weekend.
“It was only a combination of pleasure and terrifying. Being terrified and excited and simply attempting to grasp, you understand, make sense of all the things,” Melissa Highsmith informed KDFW-TV.
In an announcement Monday, the Fort Price Police Division stated it’s “overjoyed” to listen to that 23andMe led the Highsmiths to Melissa, and they're going to conduct official DNA testing to substantiate her identification. The investigation into her kidnapping will proceed.
“I couldn’t cease crying,” Melissa’s sister, Victoria Garner, wrote on Fb.
“I used to be overjoyed and I’m nonetheless strolling round in a fog attempting to understand that my sister is correct in entrance of me and that we discovered her.”
In response to the Nationwide Middle for Lacking and Exploited Youngsters, Melissa Highsmith’s organic mom, Alta Apantenco, had just lately separated from the lady's father and moved to Fort Price when she positioned an advert for a babysitter within the newspaper.
A girl who answered the advert stated she wished to look at the lady at her personal home, and Apantenco agreed. The babysitter picked up the newborn from Apantenco's roommate on August 23, 1971 and by no means introduced her again.
The household stated they by no means forgot about Melissa.
“It’s overwhelming and unimaginable to me,” stated Sharon Highsmith, Melissa’s youthful sister.
“For 50 years, my mother has lived with the guilt of shedding Melissa. She’s additionally lived with neighborhood and nationwide accusations that she damage or killed her personal child.
"I’m so glad we've Melissa again. I’m additionally grateful we've vindication for my mother."
Jeffrie Highsmith informed KDFW that the household by no means gave up the hope of discovering Melissa.
"We had a number of suggestions, we'd go off to different states. We'd go off and speak to totally different women, have DNA made, and our hopes had been dashed," he stated. “It was laborious.”