Juana Ramirez was just three years old when she was allegedly snatched from her mother Lorena in broad daylight in a Mexico City park. She was given a new identity by her captors and brought up believing they were her real family. It was only when a photo emerged that everything changed.
Abduction in a busy park
Lorena had taken her three children to Bosque de Chapultepec, one of the largest parks in the city, with her husband and sister-in-law. The family were saying their goodbyes when little Juana suddenly disappeared. Juana, who later renamed herself Rocio, said she felt someone grab her by the waist as her parents momentarily let go of her hand, and she woke up in a stranger's house, according to Vox.
At the time of her abduction, Juana was given a new identity and age by her kidnappers, who told her her birthday was the day she was taken, October 1, 1995, instead of June 16 three years earlier.
Discovery and escape
Years after Juana's abduction, neighbours of her captors told the then-young girl that the people she lived with were not her biological parents. Following a confrontation, her "mother" told Juana she had adopted her after seeing her wandering alone in the park. Juana said the people who took her treated her "badly", leading her to flee the house at just 17 to live with her now husband.
Rocio's husband later persuaded her to research missing girls in the area. She then saw a photo that chilled her to the bone. On a missing persons register, she came across a photo of a girl who looked remarkably similar to her younger self. "There was such a strong physical resemblance I said to myself 'I'm that girl'," she stated. However, without any contact information, she said "It took me another eight years before deciding to look for my family."
Reunion after 27 years
Finally, Rocio decided to post an image of herself online to see if she could find her real family. Lorena's daughter, Maria Jose, spotted the picture on social media and made contact. After chatting online, the family arranged for Rocio to reunite with her long-lost mother.
Following their reunion, Lorena said: "I lost a three-year-old child and found a 30-year-old woman. I did not experience those stages of her life, it is a part of her that was stolen from me." Overcome with emotion, she added: "Just imagine, I suffered terribly for 27 years." Lorena later told local press: "I couldn't believe it. When I opened the door, I stopped and she walked in. That hug after 27 years." "She saw me and said 'you are my mother'. I replied 'yes, and you are my daughter'. 'Thank you for the opportunity to see you again'."
