60-Year-Old Mother Dramatically Reunites with Son Missing for 42 Years Through DNA Analysis

Utilizing the 'Overseas Korean Adoptee Family Search' Program

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The National Police Agency announced on the 16th that a man in his 40s who went missing after leaving home at the age of 4 was dramatically reunited with his family after 42 years through genetic analysis.

According to the police, Mr. A (46), who went missing at Suwon Terminal, Gyeonggi Province in January 1981 and was adopted to Germany, was dramatically reunited with his biological mother Ms. B (67) and older brother Mr. C (48) in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province. Mr. A was 4 years old at the time of his disappearance.

This is the third case confirmed through the overseas Korean adoptee family search system implemented since 2020, where genetic samples are collected and analyzed at overseas diplomatic missions to verify biological relationships with families in Korea.

Mr. A was adopted to Germany and returned to Korea in 2009, when he visited the Suwon Western Police Station to provide a genetic sample, but no matches were found at that time.

Later, Ms. B visited the Yeoju Police Station in June last year to find her son and provided her genetic sample. In July last year, the National Forensic Service issued a report indicating a possible biological relationship between the two.

For precise confirmation of the biological relationship, a second genetic analysis was required. The police informed Mr. A that he could provide another genetic sample at an overseas diplomatic mission, and the second analysis confirmed in January this year that Mr. A is the biological son of Ms. B.

This issue was resolved through the 'Overseas Korean Adoptee Family Search' system jointly operated by related government agencies.

The Yeoju Police Station and the Adoption Support Center of the Child Rights Protection Agency, which handled this case, carefully coordinated the reunion schedule, location, and method. During this process, adoption support services were also provided to counsel on cultural differences.

Mr. A said, "Reuniting with my biological family is a great blessing," and expressed deep gratitude to the police, embassy, and adoption support center for their help. Ms. B said, "I prayed every day to find my second son, and thanks to genetic registration, I finally found him," and thanked everyone who helped.

A National Police Agency official stated, "Finding long-term missing persons is not only a family issue but also a process of healing the pains of modern Korean society," and added, "We will continue to explore ways to enhance genetic testing to find long-term missing children."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.