Madeleine McCann’s parents ‘buoyed’ after newborn baby snatched from hospital found 18 years later
THE parents of missing Madeleine McCann are full of fresh hope after a newborn baby taken from a hospital 18 years ago was found alive.
Kate and Gerry McCann are "buoyed" by the news of Kamiyah Mobley, who was discovered alive after being kidnapped from a Florida hospital in 1998.
Kamiyah was born in University Medical Centre, Jacksonville, Florida to mum Shanara but just eight hours later was snatched by a woman posing to be a nurse.
Kamiyah had no idea of her real identity and assumed the woman she was living with was her birth mother - until cold case cops traced her to her home in Walterboro, South Carolina.
A DNA test confirmed she is Shanara's daughter and 'mum' Gloria Williams, 51, has now been arrested on charges of kidnapping and interference with custody.
Kamiyah's dad has said he "can't wait" to meet her but local authorities say it it up to Kamiyah to decide whether she will return to her biological family or not.
The case is believed to have triggered fresh hope in Maddie's parents, who are hoping a new year "miracle" with reunite them with their missing daughter ten years after she vanished.
A family friend said: "It shows that dreams can come true and this teenager being found so many years after the event is another example that will give Kate and Gerry hope.”
The McCann's have never given up hope that Maddie, who disappeared on a family holiday aged three, could still be alive.
A Facebook campaign promoting the hunt for their daughter, which they endorse, said recently: “We still have great hope and believe in miracles. Thank you for continuing to be by our side. Let’s get her home.”
At Christmas former GP Kate and heart doctor Gerry, both 48, appealed to Maddie's abductor and people close to their tormentor to finally "do the right thing" and come forward.
They wrote in a global message: "Somebody knows. We just hope they find the courage and compassion to let us know too.”
Madeleine was born on 12 May 2003 and disappeared just before her fourth birthday on 3 May 2007.
This means she would be 13 years old today.
Her parents have always insisted that they would never give up searching for her.
Potential sightings of the British three-year old were followed up by British cops total 8,685 across 101 countries and territories, a Freedom of Information request by The Sun showed in October.
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