Mystery blonde girl found in Greece prompts search for parents (Updated)

German or Scandinavian? Eastern European also possible.

reply to post by Nyiah

Other articles say she (the girl) only speaks Roma, but can understand Greek.
I've been reading as many articles as I can find to try to get a better picture of this whole ordeal. To be blunt, this reeks of child trafficking. The couple claimed to have 14 children that the woman gave birth to, whereas one article cited, they really only have 4 biological children. Forged documents for 6 children being born to her in a 10 month span is a big, giant honking red flag.

Yeah, a big, giant, honking, NEON, BLINKING red flag with a siren!!!

Wow.

Thanks for that, I had to leave for awhile; I really appreciate everybody digging around on this one.
Poor little thing...

Speaks only Roma, eh?? Wowza.

reply to post by Dianec

I'm not sure why anyone thinks she looks well and healthy. What's with the scratches or bruises on her wrists? And she has some marks on her face. Kids get injuries all the time but I see marks that shouldn't be there.

Sorry, Dianec, but I just don't see it.

She looks like a zillion other dissheveled kids who live in poor neighborhoods. Roma have a very fringe culture, I would be MORE surprised if she looked dressed up for a "beauty pageant."

And, having been an intervention counselor for families & children, I can tell you she does NOT look ill, just "unkempt."

But, I guess we'll find out. Perhaps there are other pics of her so I can tell better.

reply to post by wildtimes


You cannot see the marks on her wrists?

Sometimes police find these kids stored in cages, and sometimes being purposely disfigured to increase begging profits.

reply to post by Nyiah
If she was taken, then what would keep them from changing her age and birthdate? A child's age can be very misleading. Just a thought.

This link has a video of her as a toddler. They probably used her for begging - and hopefully not more. I watched another update to say she was in bad physical condition - from neglect and/or abuse I assume. Sadly she is responding as any child would if taken from the only family they have known. Cried herself to sleep.

I wish this Ben Needham mystery would be put to rest as well. Evidently he was spotted at this same village some 20 years ago but investigations weren't complete. That story always haunts me - just as the Johnny Gosch one does. So many broken lives all for the sake of perversion and money.

news.sky.com...

Dianec
I'm not sure why anyone thinks she looks well and healthy. What's with the scratches or bruises on her wrists? And she has some marks on her face. Kids get injuries all the time but I see marks that shouldn't be there.

I feel the same way. This young child looks like she has been beaten, regularly. From the pained look on her face, to the scratches, and bruises that have obviously healed. By beaten, I don't mean she was beaten lately...obviously the victim of such violence, though.

It's really sad that people are going, "Oh, what a darling, so cute." Well, she may be...but, it's obvious she has been mentally and physically tortured. It's pretty sad that people cannot even see this, in this photo. This young child has been through hell, and looks it.

No wonder child abuse goes on every day, people look it straight in the face, and say, "What a beautiful young child, c'mere lemme pinch your cheeks."

Ignorance.

reply to post by Catacomb


It appears she has a scalp condition too. It could be due to being unclean or lack of medical attention. Its one thing to be dirty but yes - I see scratches and bruises and she is pretty well covered so I'm sure there is worse underneith. Maybe those who were looking weren't able to zoom in.

Something weird is that the newest suspect in the Madeline mccann case looks an awful lot like Ben Needham (images of what he may look like now). If look at origional drawing of suspect and then picture of Ben - similar nose, thin lips, longer chin. This was 6 years ago so he would have been about 18. If he was raised in this same village it would be easy to see how one could grow up to do what was done to them. In any case - just a weird coincidence how much alike they look. I know it isn't a match - just strange that so much alike - coincidental. I believe the new suspect for Madeline is older.

I can't see any scratches or bruises on her. (Maybe it's my monitor?) To me, she looks very healthy and strong. If there are bruises and scratches on her, it could be from when the raid happened and she fought to stop herself being snatched by these frightening strangers and to try to stay with those familiar to her. In the photo, she looks defiant.

reply to post by wildtimes


Human trafficking does not just occur overseas, it occurs in the U.S. all the time.

The findings of the U.S. Department of Justice's 2011 report, “Characteristics of Suspected Human Trafficking Incidents, 2008-2010,” include:

From 2008 to 2010, Federal anti-trafficking task forces opened 2,515 suspected cases of human trafficking.
82% of suspected incidents were classified as sex trafficking and nearly half of these involved victims under the age of 18.

Approximately 10% of the incidents were classified as labor trafficking.

83% of victims in confirmed sex-trafficking incidents were identified as U.S. citizens, while most confirmed labor-trafficking victims were identified as undocumented immigrants (67%) or legal immigrants (28%).

only 25% of the confirmed victims received a "T-visa," part of a federal program designed to aid victims of trafficking.

Wikipedia: Human Trafficking in the U.S.

The Silk Road, the website that was shut down by the Feds, had people for sale as well on there - as you can see, there are people that are used for both slave sex and slave labor.

taoistguy
I can't see any scratches or bruises on her. (Maybe it's my monitor?) To me, she looks very healthy and strong. If there are bruises and scratches on her, it could be from when the raid happened and she fought to stop herself being snatched by these frightening strangers and to try to stay with those familiar to her. In the photo, she looks defiant.

Yea it may be your monitor. I'm on an ipad so can zoom in. You can clearly see bumps on her head (probably a fungal infection or scabies), and can see some scratches and bruises on her wrists, and a couple of small ones on her face. They even said she was in bad physical condition in one news account I watched today. She was hiding under the covers and peeking out when authorities found her. But they don't grab a small child by the wrists - if trained to work with children - ever. They are too fragile. If you watch the video of the "mom" she pushes her son out of the video in a shameful and forceful way. It is a sign this is not a woman who has patience with children. Why she wanted the video of just the girl as a toddler - dancing and spinning around - coaxing her do it is weird too.

I don't think she looks malnourished or anything - just manhandled and the bruise looks older on her wrist. The little bumps are strange. I keep coming back to a parasitic or fungal infection. I know in one news account they said when Ben Needham was thought to be in this village the authorities were afraid to go in. That tells me these are aggressive people. How do the children beg if these people are such ruffians. Who would go in there as a tourist? All I know if the video I linked above shows an impatient mother.

reply to post by Dianec


Wow. You two are really reaching. (You and Catacomb).

I am in NO WAY indifferent or "flippant" about this horrific event. To read into the OP that I don't care is ridiculous...
this is a hideous problem.

wildtimes
reply to post by Dianec

 

Wow. You two are really reaching. (You and Catacomb).

I am in NO WAY indifferent or "flippant" about this horrific event. To read into the OP that I don't care is ridiculous...
this is a hideous problem.

Im not sure where that came from. I don't think you are indifferent at all. Not by a long shot. I was just pointing out that I see something, and because you do not it may be because you cannot zoom in. I then proceeded to explain what I was seeing in addition to some facts about how trained adults handle children, so they would not have left bruises on her wrists. I'm sorry you felt attacked.

It will be interesting to see what comes of this case. If no one claims her that will be a real tragedy to cap off an already bad situation.

This is nothing new in the US this goes to the US Congress through the Whitehouse - take a look at the Franklin Scandal:

From what ive heard the Penn State Sex Scandal goes from Sandusky to Rick Santorum up through the Congressional Page Sex Scandal - the whole extent of it was cover-up'd but it goes right to the Whitehouse.
It started & ended with Sandusky but only the tip of the iceburg.

They killed the story in the press.

Google Ed Savitz or the Franklin Scandal & you will get a picture of what's going on in this country with our leaders.

reply to post by Dianec


Okay, then. No, I am on a laptop - no zooming in.

If she's been harmed, that makes it even worse than it already was.
Peace

news.sky.com...

sky has issued an article now saying that they have eight 'promising leads' - 4 calls from the US.
Also, that although she is in the hospital, there is no evidence of "abuse" or "neglect" yet - she is basically healthy, and pending test results, they think sh'es fine.

But a man calling himself Kostas, the brother of the 39-year-old male, said Maria was very loved and cared for.

Maria was found with a Roma Gypsy family
The girl is being looked after by The Smile of the Child charity
"We got this girl in a very nice way. We raised her. We got her. She was given to us and we raised her," he said.

"She had problems with her eyes. We took her to the doctor, we took her everywhere. We didn't take her to sell her. We loved her so much, with so much passion."

Giorgos Tsakiris, the general secretary of the Roma association in Farsala, said the girl had a good life with the people who were raising her.

He said: "I can tell you better than her other siblings, the biological ones. She spent her days very well and that is why the little girl loves them and what they say about abductions is not true."

So, there oughta be doctors who can corroborate her health history, I guess.

reply to post by wildtimes


I hate to say it but...Taken by Gypsy's sounds soooo, stereotyped.
Not saying it isn't true.. just sounds a little too covenant ya know...

Anyway yeah, lots of folks would pay big bucks for a little blond girl... the sex trafficking problem is right up there with drug trafficking as a major money maker. Just last month I heard a reference to Juarez Mexico murders. where girls have been found raped, killed and dumped out in the surrounding desert... The number toped 2,500 last year... Funny how that news was never reported?

In this day and age a parent just cannot take their eyes off their kids... you just blink and someone will scoop them up!

This has already slipped from the "Front Page" of BBC news! But a search has brought up a summary, www.bbc.co.uk...
and a denial by the Roma community of abduction.
www.bbc.co.uk...

All I hope, is that wherever she ends up, it is not into the wrong hands, so maybe reduced publicity is a good thing. Less slavering molesters, abusers etc etc waiting in the wings to pick up a desirable property!