Abducted as a boy

Family finds missing person after 70 years

Luis Armando Albino (right) was able to see his brother Roger (left) one last time before he died.

(Bild: Alida Alequin (privat))

"Just for fun", a woman from the USA did a DNA test - and made a surprising and, above all, pleasant discovery: a hit in the database pointed to her uncle on the other side of the country - he had been missing for 70 years.

In 1951, six-year-old Luis Armando Albino was abducted with the help of sweets in a Californian park where he had been playing with his brother. More than seven decades later, he has now been found thanks to an online ancestry test, old photos and newspaper clippings, the Bay Area News Group reported Friday.

Man lived completely new life
The stumbling block was the initiative of the man's niece, who tracked him down on the east coast of the USA with the support of the police, the FBI and the Department of Justice. Albino, now a father and grandfather, is a retired firefighter and Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam, his 63-year-old niece told Alida Alequin.

As it turned out, the Puerto Rican-born boy was brought to the East Coast by a woman at the time, where he ended up with a couple who raised him as their own son. Albino remained missing for more than 70 years, but his mother, who died in 2005, never gave up hope that her son was still alive.

Niece provides crucial clue
Oakland police confirmed that Alequin's efforts "played a significant role in the search for her uncle." In an interview with the news agency, she said, "My uncle hugged me and said: 'Thank you for finding me' and gave me a kiss on the cheek."

She had her first inkling that her uncle might still be alive in 2020 when she took an online DNA test "just for fun", Alequin said. This resulted in a 22 percent match with a man who eventually turned out to be her uncle. However, a further search at the time yielded no answers or response from him, she said.

New lead was solid
Earlier this year, she and her daughters began searching again. On a visit to the Oakland Public Library, she looked at microfilms of Tribune articles - including one that included a picture of Luis and Roger. This convinced her that she was on the right track. That same day, she went to the Oakland Police Department.

Investigators eventually agreed that the new lead was valid and opened a new missing persons case. Just last week, Oakland police said the missing persons case was closed. However, the kidnapping investigation is not yet over for the police and the FBI.

Family overjoyed to be reunited
Luis was found on the East Coast and provided a DNA sample, as did his sister, Alequin's mother. On June 20, the final news finally came that her uncle had been found. "We didn't start crying until after the investigators left," Alequin said.

"I grabbed my mother's hands and said, 'We've found him'." On June 24, Luis arrived in Oakland with members of his family with the help of the FBI. He then returned to the East Coast, but came back to Oakland in July for a three-week visit.

It was also the last time he saw his brother Roger, who died in August. "I was always determined to find him, and who knows, maybe my story will help other families going through the same thing," Alequin said. "I would say don't give up."