A younger twin sister was reunited with her family in Wuhan, Hubei province, on Monday after being separated for 36 years, thanks to a photo of her twin sister.
Hua Hua (a pseudonym) went missing in the winter of 1988 when she was just 3 years old. Her parents were busy with household chores on the second floor of their home while their twin daughters played in the snow downstairs, the parents told the Wuhan-based Jimu News.
Suddenly, the elder sister Jing Jing (a pseudonym) returned to the house alone, prompting her parents to rush outside. However, Hua Hua was nowhere to be found.
Friends and neighbors joined the frantic search, scouring a radius of several kilometers for hours, but to no avail. The couple reported the case to the police, who immediately launched an investigation. Despite interviewing dozens of people, no significant leads emerged by nightfall.
The parents distributed flyers and posters throughout the city and neighboring counties in the hope of finding their daughter. However, limited communication channels and technology hindered their efforts.
"My employer also helped us publish missing person notices in the media and distribute flyers on the streets, but it didn't work," the father said. "We tried everything, but nothing came of it."
The elder sister also actively searched for her sister online, but without success.
The unsolved case remained a heavy burden for both the family and the police. Over the years, the authorities continued their search while staying abreast of technological advancements that could assist in their efforts.
In 2016, 2018 and 2021, the police in Wuhan's Hanyang district collected blood samples from the parents and entered them into the national database for comparison. However, due to limitations in technology, no matches were found.
In late May 2021, officers once again visited the family and obtained a photo of the elder twin for comparison. This proved to be a crucial step, as police information comparison technologies had significantly improved.
In July this year, in a special operation organized by the Hubei Provincial Public Security Department to combat kidnapping and trafficking, police found a woman named Hong Hong (a pseudonym), who bore a striking resemblance to Jing Jing, in Xingtai, Hebei province, some 800 kilometers north of Wuhan.
Investigations revealed that Hong Hong had been given away to a foster family at the age of 3 and had built a life in the adopted town, unaware of her true identity. She is now the mother of two sons.
Further DNA testing confirmed that Hong Hong is actually the missing Hua Hua. The police investigation into the case continues.
Since its establishment in 2021, the special task force for missing persons and family reunions in Wuhan's Hanyang district has conducted more than 90 blood and image sample collections, leading to the reunions of over 40 missing individuals with their families.
