World
Parents find daughter abducted 51 years ago thanks to DNA
An American family has found their missing daughter five decades later thanks to genetic testing.
Melissa Highsmith, now a grown woman, was an infant when she was abducted from her parents’ home in Fort Worth, Texas. August 23, 1971 will forever remain in the lives of Alta Atapenko and Jeffrey Highsmith, who more than 50 years later managed to find their daughter again, without the participation of the police or private investigators, thanks to DNA.
According to the BBC, Melissa Highsmith was 22 months old when her nanny took her in. The mother, who was looking after her daughter alone at the time, posted an ad looking for a nanny to take care of the child in her absence. And it was the nanny, whom Alta never met in person, who disappeared with Melissa on the very first day of work, never to return.
The Highsmiths reported the disappearance to the police, naming the woman as their prime suspect, but the investigation turned up nothing. And for more than half a century, they never gave up, even with the help of 23andME, a DNA testing service that uncovers family ancestry and can match unknown relatives by genetic code. The truth is that after 51 years of suffering that never gave hope of dying, it happened. With the help of DNA, Alta and Geoffrey discovered that their missing daughter was not only alive, but living in the same city.
date on saturday
Correspondence with Melissa’s children brought the family to a happy conclusion. “One of our sisters spoke to Melissa’s daughter, the youngest, and she took us to her mother,” said Jeff, Melissa’s younger brother, who never met his sister, Fox News was quoted as saying.
When her biological father got involved on social media, Melissa (raised as Melanie by the woman who kidnapped her) couldn’t believe it. “My dad texted me and said, ‘You know, I’ve been looking for my daughter for 51 years.’ I asked the person who raised me if there was anything they wanted to tell me. It’s baby Melissa,” he told KTVT. , an affiliate station of CNN International.
“We are very happy to announce that we have found Melissa. There are so many details we’d like to share, but for now, we’d just like to say that we followed the DNA match that led us to her,” announced meanwhile. , family in social networks. , in a long emotional text accompanied by snapshots.
The crime of kidnapping has been banned for many years, but the Fort Worth police have already announced that they will conduct an investigation to find out all the information they have about the kidnapping.
Proud web evangelist. Travel ninja. Creator. Freelance food nerd. Passionate bacon fanatic.
World
Vladimir Putin has delayed the invasion of Ukraine at least three times.
Putin has repeatedly consulted with Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu about the invasion, Europa Press told Ukraine’s chief intelligence director Vadim Skibitsky.
According to Skibitsky, it was the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), which is responsible for counterintelligence and espionage work, that put pressure on Gerasimov and other military agencies to agree to launch an offensive. .
However, according to the Ukrainian intelligence services, the FSB considered that by the end of February sufficient preparations had already been made to guarantee the success of the Russian Armed Forces in a lightning invasion.
However, according to Kyiv, the Russian General Staff provided the Russian troops with supplies and ammunition for only three days, hoping that the offensive would be swift and immediately successful.
The head of Ukrainian intelligence also emphasized the cooperation of local residents, who always provided the Ukrainian authorities with up-to-date information about the Russian army, such as the number of soldiers or the exact location of troops.
The military offensive launched on February 24 by Russia in Ukraine caused at least 6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 7.8 million refugees to European countries, which is why the UN classifies this migration crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945). gg.). ).
At the moment, 17.7 million Ukrainians are in need of humanitarian assistance, and 9.3 million are in need of food aid and housing.
The UN has presented as confirmed 6,755 civilian deaths and 10,607 wounded since the beginning of the war, stressing that these figures are much lower than the real ones.
Proud web evangelist. Travel ninja. Creator. Freelance food nerd. Passionate bacon fanatic.
World
Life sentence for former Swedish official for spying for Russia
A Stockholm court on Monday sentenced a former Swedish intelligence officer to life in prison for spying for Russia, and his brother to at least 12 years in prison. In what is considered one of the most serious cases in Swedish counterintelligence history, much of the trial took place behind closed doors in the name of national security.
According to the prosecution, it was Russian military intelligence, the GRU, who took advantage of the information provided by the two brothers between 2011 and their arrest at the end of 2021.
Peyman Kia, 42, has held many senior positions in the Swedish security apparatus, including the army and his country’s intelligence services (Säpo). His younger brother, Payam, 35, is accused of “participating in the planning” of the plot and of “managing contacts with Russia and the GRU, including passing on information and receiving financial rewards.”
Both men deny the charges, and their lawyers have demanded an acquittal on charges of “aggravated espionage,” according to the Swedish news agency TT.
The trial coincides with another case of alleged Russian espionage, with the arrest of the Russian-born couple in late November in a suburb of Stockholm by a police team arriving at dawn in a Blackhawk helicopter.
Research website Bellingcat identified them as Sergei Skvortsov and Elena Kulkova. The couple allegedly acted as sleeper agents for Moscow, having moved to Sweden in the late 1990s.
According to Swedish press reports, the couple ran companies specializing in the import and export of electronic components and industrial technology.
The man was again detained at the end of November for “illegal intelligence activities.” His partner, suspected of being an accomplice, has been released but remains under investigation.
According to Swedish authorities, the arrests are not related to the trial of the Kia brothers.
Proud web evangelist. Travel ninja. Creator. Freelance food nerd. Passionate bacon fanatic.
World
Ukraine admitted that Russia may announce a general mobilization
“They can strengthen their positions. We understand that this can happen. At the same time, we do not rule out that they will announce a general mobilization,” Danilov said in an interview with the Ukrainska Pravda online publication.
Danilov believed that this mobilization would also be convened “to exterminate as many as possible” of Russian citizens, so that “they would no longer have any problems on their territory.”
In this sense, Danilov also reminded that Russia has not given up on securing control over Kyiv or the idea of the complete “destruction” of Ukraine. “We have to be ready for anything,” he said.
“I want everyone to understand that [os russos] they have not given up on the idea of destroying our nation. If they don’t have Kyiv in their hands, they won’t have anything in their hands, we must understand this,” continued Danilov, who also did not rule out that a new Russian offensive would come from “Belarus and other territories.” .
As such, Danilov praised the decision of many of its residents who chose to stay in the Ukrainian capital when the war broke out in order to defend the city.
“They expected that there would be panic, that people would run, that there would be nothing to protect Kyiv,” he added, referring to President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The military offensive launched on February 24 by Russia in Ukraine caused at least 6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 7.8 million refugees to European countries, which is why the UN classifies this migration crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945). gg.). ).
At the moment, 17.7 million Ukrainians are in need of humanitarian assistance, and 9.3 million are in need of food aid and housing.
The Russian invasion, justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin on the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security, was condemned by the international community at large, which responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and imposing political and economic sanctions on Russia.
The UN has presented as confirmed 6,755 civilian deaths and 10,607 wounded since the beginning of the war, stressing that these figures are much lower than the real ones.
Proud web evangelist. Travel ninja. Creator. Freelance food nerd. Passionate bacon fanatic.
-
World3 years ago
The Gabby Petito case. Brian Landry set up camp with his family after his girlfriend disappeared
-
Top News4 years ago
Tristan Thompson reacts to Khloé Kardashian’s new appearance
-
Top News4 years ago
TLC ‘sMothered’ recap: ‘Party curled up,’ boyfriend problem
-
Top News4 years ago
Alex Cooper hosts a solo podcast
-
Top News4 years ago
2021 Ford Bronco price: Here’s how much the 2-door and 4-door cost
-
Tech4 years ago
Fall Guys is supplying out a legendary costume and Kudos as an apology present
-
Top News4 years ago
Chiara de Blasio was ‘very cold’ during the arrest of the protest: witness
-
Top News4 years ago
How to Watch Yellowstone Season 3, Episode 2 Live Online