Woman tries to find her biological mom, but instead finds out she was reported missing in 1980

Editor's note: This article was originally published on October 2, 2022. It has since been updated.

Trigger warning: This story contains themes of sexual abuse that some readers may find distressing.

Many of those who have been adopted have a strong urge to find biological parents and connect their roots, culture and more. When Shawne Bolton, 42, went looking for answers, what she found derailed her life. After finding no information on her mom, she decided to check police records in the town she was born, in the hope of finding some information. The cops listened to her story, studied her profile and told her that she was actually reported missing in 1980 and thus revealing that she was brought up by her kidnappers. She was 26 years old at the time. She shared her story in a TikTok video captioned: “How I learned I had been kidnapped.” The video has been viewed by more than 3.3 million people.

She was told at the age of 10 that she wasn’t the biological daughter of her parents. Her parents were divorcing and her "mother" told her she didn't want anything to do with Bolton. In the video, she explained that she was in a good place in life when she went looking for answers at 26. Her life was looking up and she was engaged to be married. She had called the police to check if her biological mom had any criminal records, but after she divulged more of her information, the sheriff informed her that she was reported missing a few months after being born on November 1, 1979. She was alleged to have been kidnapped but the investigation never amounted to anything. "It's still an open investigation. I am trying to solve it by myself and have been for 15 years," she wrote.

Bolton has since posted multiple videos addressing questions about her past and they all paint a dark picture. She has since been piecing together her past. When she finally found her mom with the help of a private investigator, she learned that her mother had sold her to the people who eventually raised her—Steven and Angie. It turns out her mother was the one who filed a missing case report as her grandmother freaked out and asked her to file one. Bolton's Mom had also listed Steven as a suspect but the angle wasn't properly investigated.

Bolton had a dark past having been abused by her parents and family friends. When asked to elaborate on her childhood, she wrote, "Lonely. Cold. Lots of beatings. Sex abuse. Being passed around to relatives and friends. I did not have any normal childhood moments in my young life," she wrote. Bolton also added that she was asked to hide when visitors came. After sharing her stories with TikTok, a follower @gail4ce put their own detective hat on and helped find her biological father, with whom she is now getting on well. A DNA test confirmed that he was indeed her father. They even met up and she posted a video of them hanging out at her home. The resemblance was uncanny and her followers were happy for her. Her father later told her that she was a secret love child and he did know about her but put it in the back of his mind so he wouldn't have to process it.

She also touched upon a very important topic explaining how she felt love for the parents who brought her up even though they had abused her. "I did feel love at times. I think even crazy people who abuse children can, in their crazy ways, can love those children. And when you're in an abusive situation, you will take even little bits of love and cherish that. It's complicated," she said.

She is now focusing on her own life and learning to love herself. "Love all the pieces of who you are. we grow and become different people with every choice we make! Choose happiness and self-love," she wrote in one video.