In a remarkable turn of events, a man who was allegedly abducted as a child in California 73 years ago was discovered in June, thanks to an online ancestry test.
The man, Luis Armando Albino, was born in Puerto Rico and vanished from Jefferson Square Park in West Oakland on February 21, 1951. As reported by Mercury News, a woman allegedly enticed the six-year-old away with the offer of candy while he was playing with his brother, Roger.
Albino and his five siblings had migrated from Puerto Rico with their mother just the previous summer. At the time of his disappearance, Albino was still learning English. His sudden disappearance sparked a colossal search operation spanning nine blocks, involving local police, soldiers from the Oakland Army Base, the Coast Guard, and others. Despite the extensive search and repeated interrogations of Roger Albino, who maintained that a woman wearing a bandana had taken his brother, Luis Armando Albino remained missing. The FBI also joined the investigation.
According to Mercury News, Antonia Albino, the mother of the missing boy, visited the police missing person bureau with a frequency that gradually decreased from daily to weekly, monthly, and then annually. However, her son was never found. Antonia's long vigil for her son ended when she passed away at the age of 92 in 2005.
Albino's niece, Alida Alequin, 63, revealed to Mercury News that she had always known about her missing uncle. A photograph of Albino was a constant presence in the family home. Alequin recalled that her grandmother Antonia always believed that Albino was alive and often spoke of him. Antonia even carried the original Oakland Tribune article about her son's disappearance in her wallet.
In 2020, Alequin decided to take an online DNA test "just for fun." The test revealed a 22 percent match with a man, but further attempts to contact him were unsuccessful. However, after watching a documentary on Puerto Rican folklore in February, Alequin was inspired to renew her search. She and her daughters began researching the man's identity online, and they found pictures that led them to believe he could be Alequin's long-lost uncle.
A trip to the Oakland Public Library's archive of Oakland Tribune articles yielded a picture of Albino with his brother Roger. Alequin reported her discovery to the Oakland Police the same day. The missing persons case was reopened, and both the FBI and California's Department of Justice became involved.
On June 20, investigators informed Alequin that they had located Albino on the East Coast. He had provided a DNA sample, as had Alequin's mother, his sister. According to Mercury News, Albino's alleged abductor had flown him to the East Coast, where he was raised by a couple as their own son. Albino went on to serve twice in Vietnam as a Marine Corps veteran and later became a retired firefighter.
On June 24, investigators reunited Albino with Alequin, her mother, and other relatives. Albino, who reportedly did not wish to speak with the media, was driven by Alequin to see his brother Roger the next day. "They grabbed each other and had a really tight, long hug. They sat down and just talked," Alequin shared with Mercury News. The brothers reportedly discussed the day of the kidnapping and their military service, among other topics.
Albino admitted to having some memories of the kidnapping and the subsequent journey from the West Coast to the East Coast, but said that the adults in his life never answered his questions about it. He visited again in July and saw Roger once more before Roger passed away in August. Alequin told Mercury News that Roger died "happily" and "at peace with himself, knowing that his brother was found."
In light of this extraordinary story, Alequin urged other families in similar situations not to lose hope. The police echoed her sentiment, stating that "the outcome of this story is what we strive for."
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