Mr. Wei's family, from Sichuan province (southwestern China), has spent more than three decades searching for their son who was kidnapped when he was just 4 years old.
Using a DNA database, Mr. Wei's family found their son, who was in prison for theft in the eastern province of Zhejiang.
The reunion of Mr. Wei's family after more than 30 years in a prison in Zhejiang, China. (Photo: SCMP)
Inmate Mingdong (name changed), 37, was identified as Mr. Wei's long-lost son when his DNA was collected by the prison in April during admission procedures.
Meanwhile, Mr. Wei and his wife registered their DNA with a national network designed to help people find lost family members.
Mingdong was reunited with his parents and two sisters in Zhejiang prison on November 20. His relatives hugged him tightly and promised to take him home when he finished his prison term.
Mingdong happily shared that he had committed many petty crimes and had been to prison four times. "Now I have a home to return to. I will start over when I get out of prison," he said.
Mingdong's reunion with his family in prison moved many. Some have suggested that Mingdong's crimes were the result of a life ruined by human trafficking.
“Parents’ care and supervision are really important in a person’s growth. If he hadn’t been kidnapped, he could have received a lot of love from his family and become a good man,” one netizen commented.
According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, the country recorded a total of 118,598 cases of trafficking of women and children nationwide from 2010 to 2021.
China has stepped up efforts to combat human trafficking in recent years.
A national DNA database in China was established in 2009 to collect and compare the DNA of families searching for lost relatives. A “reunion” campaign was launched in 2021, with the establishment of kin search offices at police stations across the country.
Hua Yu (Source: SCMP)
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