AP – Luis Armando Albino was six years old when he was abducted in 1951 while playing in a park in Oakland, California. More than seven decades later, Albino was located with the help of an online ancestry analysis, old photographs, and newspaper clippings.
With assistance from the police, the FBI, and the Department of Justice, Albino's niece in Oakland tracked down her uncle, alive and living on the East Coast, as reported by The Bay Area News Group on Friday.
Albino, who is now a father and grandfather, is a retired firefighter and a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Vietnam War, according to his niece, Alida Alequin, 63. She was the one who found Albino and organized the reunion with his family in California this past June.
With assistance from the police, the FBI, and the Department of Justice, Albino's niece in Oakland tracked down her uncle, alive and living on the East Coast, as reported by The Bay Area News Group on Friday.
Albino, who is now a father and grandfather, is a retired firefighter and a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Vietnam War, according to his niece, Alida Alequin, 63. She was the one who found Albino and organized the reunion with his family in California this past June.
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On February 21, 1951, Albino—born in Puerto Rico—was playing in a park in west Oakland with his older brother when a woman started speaking to him in Spanish and promised to buy him candy.
Instead, the woman abducted the boy and traveled with him by plane to the East Coast, where he ended up with a couple who raised him as their own son, according to the news group. Neither the authorities nor his family specified the exact East Coast location where he lived.
Albino remained missing for over 70 years, but his family always kept him in their thoughts, and several of his relatives had a photograph of him in their homes, his niece said. His mother passed away in 2005 but never lost hope that her son was alive.
The Oakland police acknowledged that Alequin's efforts "played a crucial role in locating her uncle" and that "the outcome of this story is what we always aspire to."
In an interview with the news group, Alequin said her uncle hugged her, "He told me, ‘Thank you for finding me,’ and kissed me on the cheek."
According to articles published by the Oakland Tribune at the time, police officers, soldiers from a local Army base, the Coast Guard, and other city employees joined a massive search to find the child. The San Francisco Bay and other waterways were also inspected, according to reports from that era.
Investigators questioned his brother, Roger Albino, multiple times, who always maintained his story that a woman with a red scarf around her head had taken his brother.
The first sign that her uncle might still be alive came in 2020, when Alequin took an online DNA test "just for fun." The results showed a 22% match with a man who eventually turned out to be her uncle. A more thorough search at the time yielded no answers.
In early 2024, she and her daughters resumed the search. During a visit to the Oakland Public Library, she reviewed microfilm of Tribune articles—including one with a photograph of Luis and Roger—which convinced her she was heading in the right direction. That same day, she visited the Oakland police.
Investigators eventually concluded that the new lead was relevant and opened a new missing person case.
The Oakland police announced last week that this case is now closed, although the FBI considers the abduction to remain an open investigation.
Luis was located on the East Coast and provided a DNA sample, as did his sister, Alequin's mother.
On June 20, investigators visited her mother's home, Alequin recalled, and informed them both that her uncle had been found.
"We didn't start crying until the investigators left," she said. "I took my mom's hands and said, ‘We found him.’ I was overwhelmed with happiness."
Four days later, with the assistance of the FBI, Luis traveled to Oakland with his family to meet Alequin, her mother, and other relatives. The next day, Alequin took her mother and uncle to Roger's home in Stanislaus County, California.
"They shared a strong, prolonged hug. They sat and talked," she recounted. They spoke about the day of the abduction, their time in the military, and other topics.
Luis returned to the East Coast but came back in July for a three-week visit. It was the last time he saw Roger, who passed away last month.
Alequin said her uncle didn't want to speak to the press.
"I was always determined to find him, and who knows, maybe my story can help other families going through the same thing," she shared. "I would tell them never to give up."
On February 21, 1951, Albino—born in Puerto Rico—was playing in a park in west Oakland with his older brother when a woman started speaking to him in Spanish and promised to buy him candy.
Instead, the woman abducted the boy and traveled with him by plane to the East Coast, where he ended up with a couple who raised him as their own son, according to the news group. Neither the authorities nor his family specified the exact East Coast location where he lived.
Albino remained missing for over 70 years, but his family always kept him in their thoughts, and several of his relatives had a photograph of him in their homes, his niece said. His mother passed away in 2005 but never lost hope that her son was alive.
The Oakland police acknowledged that Alequin's efforts "played a crucial role in locating her uncle" and that "the outcome of this story is what we always aspire to."
In an interview with the news group, Alequin said her uncle hugged her, "He told me, ‘Thank you for finding me,’ and kissed me on the cheek."
According to articles published by the Oakland Tribune at the time, police officers, soldiers from a local Army base, the Coast Guard, and other city employees joined a massive search to find the child. The San Francisco Bay and other waterways were also inspected, according to reports from that era.
Investigators questioned his brother, Roger Albino, multiple times, who always maintained his story that a woman with a red scarf around her head had taken his brother.
The first sign that her uncle might still be alive came in 2020, when Alequin took an online DNA test "just for fun." The results showed a 22% match with a man who eventually turned out to be her uncle. A more thorough search at the time yielded no answers.
In early 2024, she and her daughters resumed the search. During a visit to the Oakland Public Library, she reviewed microfilm of Tribune articles—including one with a photograph of Luis and Roger—which convinced her she was heading in the right direction. That same day, she visited the Oakland police.
Investigators eventually concluded that the new lead was relevant and opened a new missing person case.
The Oakland police announced last week that this case is now closed, although the FBI considers the abduction to remain an open investigation.
Luis was located on the East Coast and provided a DNA sample, as did his sister, Alequin's mother.
On June 20, investigators visited her mother's home, Alequin recalled, and informed them both that her uncle had been found.
"We didn't start crying until the investigators left," she said. "I took my mom's hands and said, ‘We found him.’ I was overwhelmed with happiness."
Four days later, with the assistance of the FBI, Luis traveled to Oakland with his family to meet Alequin, her mother, and other relatives. The next day, Alequin took her mother and uncle to Roger's home in Stanislaus County, California.
"They shared a strong, prolonged hug. They sat and talked," she recounted. They spoke about the day of the abduction, their time in the military, and other topics.
Luis returned to the East Coast but came back in July for a three-week visit. It was the last time he saw Roger, who passed away last month.
Alequin said her uncle didn't want to speak to the press.
"I was always determined to find him, and who knows, maybe my story can help other families going through the same thing," she shared. "I would tell them never to give up."