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Post by Admin on Mar 5, 2015 13:49:26 GMT
She is being called Zephany Nurse, though it is not the name with which the 17-year-old South African girl grew up. Zephany means "hidden by the Lord," a fitting name for a girl who was allegedly kidnapped at birth and found thanks to an improbable coincidence. South African Police have been mostly quiet about the case. A police spokesman, Andre Traut, confirmed that a woman was arrested last week and charged with kidnapping and falsely pretending that she was the girl's biological mother. Zephany was a newborn when she was taken from a Cape Town hospital in 1997. She is 17 and in her final year of school. According to the South African Press Association, an independent news agency, students at their second daughter's school unknowingly solved the kidnapping. The second daughter, who was born four years after Zephany was kidnapped, started eighth grade at a Cape Town school this year, according to SAPA. Fellow students told her there was a girl in her final year of school who looked just like her, the news agency reported. The two girls became friends, according to SAPA, and eventually, Morne Nurse made up an excuse to meet his daughter's new friend. He, too, was taken by the similarities and contacted the police, SAPA reported. A DNA test was done, and last week police arrested the 50-year-old woman who had raised Zephany. The woman made an initial appearance before a judge who ruled that she would remain behind bars at least until her next hearing. The shocking revelation has no easy conclusion. While Zephany's biological parents have said in interviews over the years that they never lost hope of finding her, for now, the girl is in the custody of the social services. The Nurses have been allowed to visit Zephany for short periods, South African media reported. And on Tuesday, Zephany herself released a statement, via the Centre for Child Law, which is representing her. "I want to say thank you to all the people who supported me through this, for continuously praying and never giving up on looking for me," she said. "Under the circumstances, I am doing fine."
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Post by Admin on Mar 14, 2015 13:57:38 GMT
Police have issued a child rescue alert for a 14-year-old girl reported missing from her home this morning. Charlotte Bainbridge, from Chilwell, Nottinghamshire, was last seen hitch-hiking near the M1 after being reported missing. She is described as white with a petite build. When last seen she was wearing black leggings, a t-shirt and a green coat. A police spokesman said: "It is vital that all members of the public in Nottinghamshire and surrounding areas be vigilant and report any sightings." Child rescue alerts are issued when police have serious concern for a young person's welfare. A spokesman for Missing People, who issue the alert alongside police, said: "We hope that by launching a child rescue alert [...] we can help in the swift and safe return of Charlotte. "More than 250,000 people have signed up to receive child rescue alerts for free and these eyes and ears on the ground could prove vital". Ms Bainbridge said: "I just want to say thank you to everybody who shared the appeal. I can't believe the response we had. I'm so touched and will be eternally grateful." Charlotte left her home at Teesdale Court at 6am on Tuesday. Police were concerned for her welfare after a member of the public reported seeing a girl, matching Charlotte's description, near junction 28 of the M1 a little later. But it was later established that the person spotted wasn't Charlotte, and the schoolgirl arrived safely back home at 3am yesterday. Ms Bainbridge added: "It was such a relief."
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Post by Admin on Mar 28, 2015 12:09:08 GMT
A woman who police claim staged her own kidnapping was a victim and is cooperating with police to clear her name, her lawyer has said. Denise Huskins met with Vallejo Police detectives for several hours on Thursday. Her lawyer Doug Rappaport said she has been emotionally and physically broken and hurt even more by being considered a suspect. "This is no hoax," he said, denying a police claim that the woman and her boyfriend had concocted the whole thing to collect a ransom. Ms Huskins has been talking to police "with the hope of clearing her name because she is absolutely, unequivocally, 100%, positively a victim", Mr Rappaport said. The alleged kidnapping took place in the pre-dawn hours on Monday, but the 29-year-old's boyfriend Aaron Quinn did not report it until around 2pm. She turned up on Wednesday outside her father's home. Hours later, police revealed they found no proof of a kidnapping and believed it was a hoax. The delay reporting the abduction was part of what aroused suspicions, Vallejo police Lieutenant Kenny Park said. A lawyer for Mr Quinn also denied the kidnapping was a hoax. Lawyer Dan Russo said his client could not immediately call police when his girlfriend was abducted because two kidnappers bound and drugged him.
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Post by Admin on Mar 30, 2015 15:19:32 GMT
Horry County Police asked the community to help find a missing woman, and according to police she has been located safe and sound. Amanda Lee Rielli (also known as "Mandie") is 25 years old, and lives in the Conway area. According to Horry County Police, she was last seen staying in hotels near Singleton Ridge and Hwy 501 in Conway approximately 2 weeks ago, and were concerned when she had not made phone or Facebook contact with family or friends in five days.
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Post by Admin on Apr 10, 2015 14:19:24 GMT
State police say they found the purse and wallet of a missing woman near a dumpster close to her home in Renovo. Kelly Jo Snyder has been missing since Sunday. Volunteers have been searching for her since. She was last seen heading to a store Easter evening. On Thursday, family and friends held a vigil for the missing 34-year-old mother of three. Though state police haven’t ruled her disappearance suspicious, her family is very worried for her safety. “She’s a wonderful person, a wonderful mother. She doesn’t do this. She wouldn’t just disappear. That just doesn’t happen,” said Ashley O’Brien of Renovo. About 60 emergency responders have joined with Snyder’s family and friends searching for her this week. Police said Snyder left her home at 243 Fourth St. at 6 p.m. Sunday to walk to Dollar General to buy some sweet potatoes, but left her keys and cell phone at her home and only took a small wallet containing her bank card, identification and money. The land search intensified Tuesday morning as dozens of people gathered at the fire hall and organized into search parties, according to Renovo Fire company EMS Captain Kari Kepler.
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