Texas woman kidnapped as a baby 51 years ago reunites with family

Texas woman believed to be 1971 kidnap victim reunites with family

A Texas woman kidnapped as a baby 51 years ago was reunited with her family after they used a home DNA test kit to track her down.

Melissa Highsmith was 22 months old when she was allegedly abducted in August 1971 by a babysitter from her family’s Fort Worth apartment, according to NBC Dallas-Fort Worth.

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Her mother, Alta Apantenco, was reportedly accused by police of possibly killing her daughter and hiding the crime, the news station reported. The family, however, said Highsmith was taken from the home by a babysitter who answered Apantenco’s newspaper advertisement seeking help.

They spent more than five decades looking for Highsmith before a DNA match on 23andMe provided a break in the case.

Read more from NBC News.