After 17 years: school friend turns out to be a kidnapped sister

There was no trace and no suspects: When little Zephany Nurse was kidnapped from the hospital three days after her birth, the situation seemed utterly hopeless. Her parents, Mornè and Celeste, were desperate, but they did not want to give up hope: their little Zephany was out there somewhere, if not with them. Every day they hoped to see their daughter again, even celebrating the birthday of their abducted daughter for 17 years in their absence. "Over the years, people kept talking about her being murdered, but never within the family, we knew she was still alive," one of Zephany's aides told The Guardian about the hard times.

Only a single photograph of Zephany, taken immediately after birth, remained as a reminder of the missing daughter:

Stollen baby reunited with mother after 17 years #CapeTown #ZephanyNurse ?? pic.twitter.com/jzi6hx0Xy7

Then a few weeks ago, a real miracle happened: Celeste Nurse's second daughter Cassidy joined the school and was greeted there with the words, "How funny, you look exactly like another student here". Cassidy was curious about finding her doppelganger - and, without knowing it at that moment, ran into her sister's arms. Cassidy did not know what to make of the incredible similarity - but for her brother Micah, the situation was clear as soon as he saw them together.

The two girls became friends and spent a lot of time together. One day when they went to McDonald's together, the secretive father Mornè came by to take a look at his daughter's new girlfriend. When he saw the two next to each other, his breath caught. There was no doubt - that was before him his missing daughter Zephany. He contacted the police immediately and a DNA test confirmed the assumption: After 17 years, his disappeared child had reappeared - just as a school friend of his other daughter.

In fact, it turned out that Zephany had been kidnapped by a woman which she had raised only a few miles further under a different name than her own daughter. The kidnapper is now in court - and her family first has to deal with the fact that they had an innocent kidnap victim in their midst. "She was part of our lives - and now she's gone, we're out of contact," said the kidnapper's sister, for whom a world has collapsed.

Currently Zephany is still in the custody of the authorities, but should soon move to her biological family. For their parents and siblings, who have missed them for so long, waiting for them is a hard test of patience - but measured against 17 long years of grief and doubt a trifle. What matters is: your missing daughter is back - and that's a real miracle.

18-Year-Old Discovers She Was Kidnapped At Birth - Crime Watch Daily (April 2024).