Niece's relentless efforts find uncle abducted as a 6-year-old over seven decades ago

Stories of abducted or missing children being found after years, often living completely different lives, remind us of life's unpredictability. One such incredible story has recently made headlines: a man who disappeared over 70 years ago has finally reunited with his family. Luis Armando Albino was just six years old when he was abducted in 1951 while playing in a park. Despite his family's and the police’s efforts to find him over the decades, it was ultimately the determination of his niece that led to their reunion, reports The Mercury News.

On February 21, 1951, Albino and his 10-year-old brother Roger were playing in Jefferson Square Park in West Oakland when a woman approached, offering candy to lure six-year-old Albino away. She spoke in Spanish to gain his trust and successfully abducted him. The Puerto Rico-born boy was taken to the East Coast, where he was raised by a couple who treated him as their own son. Though Albino started a new life far from home, his family never stopped searching for him, even after many had given up hope.

Back when Albino went missing, a citywide search was executed by the police, soldiers from the Oakland Army Base and even the Coast Guards. But it was all in vain. All they had was the 10-year-old Roger's account of the incident, saying that a woman wearing a bandana around her head took his brother. The abducted boy's mother, Antonia Albino, never lost hope and believed that he was alive. Unfortunately, the mom passed away in 2005, and never got to meet her little boy. It took 73 years and the unshakeable determination of Albino's 63-year-old niece, Alida Alequin, from Oakland, to solve the mystery behind her missing uncle.

It all started when Alequin's attempt to take an online DNA test revealed a 22% match match with a man. After receiving no response from the man, Alequin—along with her daughters—decided to seek the help of the internet and some archived news articles at the Oakland Public Library. Alequin's lead intrigued the FBI so much that they reopened the investigation on the kidnapping case. Eventually, Albino, now 79, was located on the East Coast and his DNA was matched with Alequin's mom who was his sister, as per KTVU. "We didn't start crying until after the investigators left. I grabbed my mom's hands and said, 'We found him.' I was ecstatic," the niece told the news channel.

Albino, a retired firefighter and Marine Corps veteran who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, arrived in Oakland on June 24 to meet his long-lost relatives. "They grabbed each other and had a really tight, long hug. They sat down and just talked," Alequin shared about Albino's reunion with Roger, who passed away roughly a month later. "I'm so happy that I was able to do this for my mom and (uncle). It was a very happy ending. I was always determined to find him, and who knows, with my story out there, it could help other families going through the same thing. I would say, don't give up," Alequin added.