'Abducted in Plain Sight' Seems Too Horrible to Be True But It Is, These Memes Perfectly Capture the Insanity of 'Abducted in Plain Sight', Where the Cleveland Abduction Survivors Are Today. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. Craig Aiken, Kamiyah Mobleys father, says his daughter is doing well and living in Jacksonville with her mother. Im only, true enough, Im only 16 years old but I have feelings, too. Oh yeah, she calls and still gets on me. Both Schoenfeld and Lowery confirm that Aiken was in the hospital room with mother and daughter when the imposter walked out with the baby. She self-medicated. Mobley was 16 years old when she gave birth to Kamiyah, on July 10, 1998. Or, learn how Natascha Kampusch survived eight years in her kidnappers cellar. Shanara Mobley, Kamiyahs biological mother in Florida, was awarded $1.5 million after settling a lawsuit against the previous University Medical Center. Who is Fuquan Johnson? We had to open every door on every room on every floor., Luggage had to be searched. "I still feel the same way about her," she told CNN in the summer of 2018. This past May she received slippers and lotion from her children living in her home. Instead, the girl had told Williams to run if she had to. (For purposes of this article, and out of respect for the young woman who only recently confirmed her birth identity, Williams now-18-year-old kidnapping victim will be called Alexis when referring to her recent experiences, and Kamiyah when referring to the infant kidnapping case in general. Investigators say Gloria Williams took Mobley from a hospital in 1998, raising her as her own daughter. I was ready to go then. Williams had miscarried a child a week prior to, which is believed to be Kamiyahs motive for the abduction. Manigo met with her birth parents, Craig Aiken and Shanara Mobley, last weekend in Columbia and says she is trying to ", Falcon 9 launches Crew-6 from Cape Canaveral, Almost a dozen people hospitalized after fire onboard Spirit flight that diverted to Jacksonville, Local Weather: The heat holds as windy becomes the weather word Friday, 'I need my mother home': Kamiyah Mobley tells judge she supports early release for her mother, kidnapper, Kamiyah Mobley's father releases new movie trailer, crowdfunding to complete his documentary "Share the Truth"- Craig Aiken, Keystone Heights man sentenced to 55 years in prison for murder of Jordan Cooper. Doctors wanted to induce labor on June 30, 1998, and told the teenager to go to the hospital. Its been exciting, Aiken said. This is a battle that I cant keep fighting. She was one of those mothers, she was like open to sleepovers, open to company. Since January 2017, the emotions of the soon-to-be-20-year-old woman with two names Kamiyah Mobley and Alexis Manigo have been playing out like some nonstop tug of war. The exact details of the heinous crime were found out in January 2017, just after the 19-year-old Kamiyah graduated from high school. Now, Lowery says, nurses have specific identification, which is disclosed to new mothers on hospital tours and upon entry into the maternity ward. She was very open to all my friends I brought through that door, Mobley later said. Growing up in Walterboro, South Carolina, Mobley had a normal, happy life. Im being rejected for a kidnapper; how do you think that feels?. Only her birthdate was real: July 10, 1998. Kamiyah traveled to Florida to meet her biological mother, father and five younger siblings, and began to build relationships with them. She exercised. Her salary is under review. Please, please, bring me my baby, Shanara Mobley pleaded on WJXT-TV4 shortly after Kamiyah was taken. And I truly feel it in my heart; I just wish she would not have come back. Men come and go in her life. The abducted child was happy, she learned. However, the prints had little value to investigators. What is a good kidnapper? In January 2017, she was found alive in Walterboro, South Carolina. Then, she walked into Shanaras room and found her with her infant daughter. Then Miss Gloria just broke down and told her, This is why right here, you cant do this. I dont feel that she should still be able to contact Kamiyah, and I dont feel that her family should be able to contact my child, she said. She admitted to posing as a nurse to kidnap the newborn. Gloria Williams posed as a nurse and stole Kamiyah Mobley from a Jacksonville hospital in July 1998 before giving the child a different name, Alexis Manigo, and raising her as her own in South Carolina. ABC News has also obtained copies of letters the kidnap victim, Kamiyah Mobley, now 19, sent Williams in jail, expressing affection for the woman she has known as her mother for most of her life. For a while, she stood and looked at the babies in the nursery. Robert Lowery is Vice President for Missing Children at NCMEC. But when she tried to get a Social Security number, she learned that her life was a lie. Velma Aiken, Kamiyahs paternal grandmother, would blame herself for the next 18 years, constantly regretting not acting on the strange feeling she got when she saw that the nurse carrying baby Kamiyah was also carrying a purse. The Daily Mail also says that DNA tests confirmed that the younger children were Williams biological offspring. She fears the worst when her children want to step outside to play. WebBirth Name: Kamiyah Teresiah Tasha Mobley NickName: Alexis Manigo Age: 24 years Date of Birth: 10 July 1998 Place of Birth: Jacksonville, Florida, United States Height: 5 feet 4 inches Weight: Moderate Education: Not available Father: Craig Aiken Mother: Shanara Mobley Siblings: Three Marital Status: Not known Childrens: Not available After the sentencing was announced, Mobleys birth mother left the courtroom with a smile on her face. The older Mobley still feels betrayed. She was healthy. Hed barely put down his keys when the phone rang. Her feelings toward Gloria arent something I would find surprising, says the NCMECs Lowery. Kamiyah was found safe in South Carolina in early 2017 when she was 18 years old, after being kidnapped from a Jacksonville hospital as a newborn in 1998. Williams raised her as her own daughter under the name Alexis Manigo. There are monitors placed on children now in many facilities. She has not shared her weight and other body measurements with the public. This time round, now youve got the legal system helping her to steal her all over again. Williams, for her part, expressed regret for what she had done. Its hard to deal with this here right now.. Schoenfeld confirms those reports. Others, such as the baby in Connecticut whose DNA was flown to Jacksonville and checked against Kamiyahs, were much more complicated. There is no baby-footprint data base, Shoenfeld says. Arika told People that Alexis, or Lexy, as her family and friends knew her, started pestering her mother for her birth certificate and Social Security card in 2015 when she started applying for jobs. Very hard-working, very hard-working.. Obviously we were let down. If we see a child leave a maternity ward in someones arms, we know theres a problem.. She was kidnapped by a woman dressed as a nurse who entered the room, assisted and conversed with the The baby was beautiful, she said, and she loved the how the name rolled off her tongue. She left her abusive relationship, regained custody of her sons, remarried, and raised Mobley as her own daughter though now renamed Alexis Manigo. According to USA Today, Mobleys continued loyalty to Williams caused tension with her birth mother, who even blocked her daughters number at one point. The baby was taken hours later by Gloria Williams, a woman posing as a nurse. Most play is inside, she said. The hospital staff, in turn, believed the then-unknown kidnapper was family. But when Alexis Manigo applied for a job at a South Carolina Shoneys Restaurant in 2015, the year she turned 17, she put into motion a series of electrifying, life-changing events. When Mobley learned Alexis was alive, on Jan. 13, 2017, she likened the joy to giving birth all over again: It was one of the happiest days of my life.. She raised me, and not only provided for my needs, but she loved me unconditionally I am fully aware of how our lives came to be, what they are and how my mom came to be my mom., Mobley added: However, at the end of the day, I love my mother and I wholeheartedly support her! Kamiyah Mobley's disappearance was a cold case for years, until police say she was found living in South Carolina with her accused kidnapper. When you find out youve got another family out there, its just more love., Protective of the woman who raised her, Alexis told Pilgrim she forgave Williams. She blames me for everything. Shes blocked now because I dont want to argue with her. Nobody saved me. Currently, mother and daughter are not on speaking terms. Since January 2017, the emotions of the soon-to-be-20-year-old woman with two names Kamiyah Mobley and Alexis Manigo have been playing out like some nonstop tug of war. The teen also continues to live in Williams home in South Carolina, saying that she looks forward to the day Wiliams is released. Over the approximately four-year period preceding April 2016, he says, no babies were kidnapped from U.S. hospital maternity wards. Kamiyah openly acknowledges that she still loves her imposter mom, and speaks to the woman regularly, sending her biological mother into a despair that has created a gaping chasm between them. Mobley is around 5 feet 4 inches tall. Kamaiyah Mobley, now 22 years old, first learned about her abduction in 2017. first learned about her abduction in 2017. a judge sentenced Williams to 18 years in prison. Copyright 2023 News4JAX.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. In that time the kidnapper, Gloria Williams, was tried and recently sentenced to 18 years in prison, and Kamiyah was reunited with her biological family. She has not received any major honors yet but based on her work, she may receive nominations in the future. I feel like Im being robbed all over again every time she reaches out to my daughter, she added. ABC News' Doug Lantz, Julia Jacobo, Rachel Katz and Amanda Maile contributed to this report. The settlement was sizable. Not even a text message. Law enforcement enlisted help from the media, and Kamiyahs kidnapping gripped the city. I have to start doing things where I dont hurt no more.. She pled not guilty on April 5. I didnt know what you went through.. Though her baby was found and the abductor imprisoned, Shanara Mobley says, 'I dont have a relationship with my child', By Eileen Kelley | The Florida Times-Union. "I know I wronged you and Im so sorry," Williams said. The JSO and FBI made the best of what technology offered at the time, including keyword searches on the internet, phones and beepers and hour upon hour of videotape from approximately 65 cameras across the hospital campus. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Celebs Info | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme. Her home life was spent bouncing between relatives and friends or lying about her age so she could get live-in babysitting jobs. Stories that inspire. Those facilities are much more difficult to get into, because of what Gloria did. Williams declined to address the media but extends "her appreciation to everyone involved in her defense as well as all of the people who either wrote letters or appeared on her behalf," Williams' attorney, Diana Johnson, said in a statement. Kamiyah who was raised under the name Alexis Manigo was born to her biological mother in Florida, Shanara Mobley. Mobley named Vanzant expletives as well as threatened to assault her several times. I dont have a relationship with my child," she said. I dont know what that means. I wanted her to sleep in her bassinet, she said. Im not saying they werent going to be good parents, Alexis told ABC reporter Eva Pilgrim, referring to Mobley and Aiken. As local authorities scoured bus terminals and airports, the search would soon rivet the nation. She loves that womans family, including the two brothers she was raised with, as well as her abductors parents. Ive never talked to her before. Its going to be painful on both sides.. Kamiyah was raised by her loving and caring parents Craig Aiken (father) and Shanara Mobley (mother). She was tired, she said, of being disrespected., I didnt know this kidnapper had such a hold on her. Aiken says hes never had a conversation with his daughters kidnapper. Copyright 2023 Distractify. According to an arrest warrant filed by the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office in January of this year, Alexis told a National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) tipster that shed suspected since 2015 that the woman who raised her, 51-year-old Gloria Bolden Williams, was not her biological mother. I just hope she is able to move on in a positive way in her life. They were part of the investigation that led to Alexiss true identity, Lowery says. Another birthday. "It hurt me more that she was in cuffs, it was just so surreal for me," she added. She gave interviews on shows like Today, Good Morning America, and WCBD News 2. Just let my baby go. Im your mother, Kamiyah. But what may have seemed like a fairy-tale ending to a heartbreaking story is apparently not meant to be. Florida State Attorneys OfficeKamiyah Mobley and her kidnapper, Gloria Williams, who raised her as her own child. That image, along with the sketch of Kamiyahs abductor, hit the airwaves, with only the following descriptors of her abductor: a black woman, about 5 feet 5 inches, 150-160 pounds, likely wearing a wig. Uh-oh, overstock: Wayfair put their surplus on sale for up to 50% off. She had no way of knowing that the hang-up phone calls she received in 2015 were made by her then 17-year-old daughter. Because [Kamiyah] came back, this has made a mockery of my life. Kamaiyah Mobley, now 22 years old, first learned about her abduction in 2017. If you was faking a pregnancy I mean, if you just cant have no kids, I mean how do you think I feel? Thats where Shanara Mobley's storybook ending ended. Published on January 18, 2017 12:47 PM. The teen continues to call Williams behind bars, saving the number of the Duval County Jail in Jacksonville, Fla., in her phone under Mommy, the Daily Mail notes. But Manigo's relationship with Mobley is tenuous at best. If [the police] would have spent more time looking for the baby and less time harassing us, something would have come of it, Aiken told reporters. The Shoneys manager asked Alexis to provide her Social Security card. We actually talked today. But her mother balked at giving it to her, no matter how often Alexis hounded her. The story got national coverage and was made into a Lifetime movie, Stolen by My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story. The family told Action News Jax that they did not have a big part in helping with the film. Im serious. Kamiyah had been raised under the name Alexis Manigo. Gloria Williams stole Kamiyah Mobley from a Jacksonville hospital in July 1998. Still, Mobley said, she feels like the community still faults her, believing she played a part in order to get money from the hospital. She served as youth-group leader for her Methodist church, which she attended every Sunday. Kamiyah, then 19, was introduced to her biological mother, Shanara Mobley, and father, Craig Aiken, raced to South Carolina following Williams' arrest. But the relationship between Kamiyah Mobley, her kidnapper, and her birth parents, is anything but simple today. It changed all of us. Williams had worked at a veterans hospital in Charleston at one time, possibly as a social worker or as a medical records specialist. There was no social mediano Twitter, Facebook or Amber Alerts to inform the publicjust TV, radio, print media and a fledgling Internet. They spent the next five hours together. Kamiyahs case was one of the centerpieces of our work with healthcare facilities. Im about to start calling her Alexis so I wont be hurt. Gloria Williams enters the courtroom for her sentencing in the kidnapping of newborn Kamiyah Mobley, June 8, 2018 at the Duval County Courthouse in Jacksonville, Fla. Gloria Williams enters the courtroom for sentencing, May 3, 2018, at the Duval County Courthouse in Jacksonville, Fla. Will Dickey/The Florida Times-Union via AP. However, at the end of the day, I love my mother and I wholeheartedly support her! If you want to be her child, be her child. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Come on now, if I thought it was going to be this hard, I could have got an abortion. Now that some time has passed, Aiken feels hes ready to visit his daughters kidnapper in prison to ask her questions about Mobleys upbringing. He was serving a sentence on an unrelated charge at the time of the sex crimes arrest, and was rearrested in the correctional facility. Shortly after police tracked Kamiyah Mobley down, she met her biological parents, Shanara and Craig Aiken, for the first time. Also read about Matt Zaffino. It fits with the behaviors weve seen with these abductors They present themselves as a healthcare worker or a nurse. Police in Walterboro matched up the birthday of the missing girl with a different name and fraudulent documents. Harms was assigned the case to help Mobley understand the court process and to have a voice. Kamiyah Mobley, after all, saw Gloria Williams as her mother. This time would be different, she vowed. Im serious. At this writing, Williams is charged with kidnapping and custodial interference and is awaiting trial as an inmate in the Duval County jail. So that was of no value whatsoever., They had no photographs, no helpful video images and no vehicle descriptions. It was one of the happiest days of my life, Shanara told USA Today of learning about Mobleys recovery and Gloria Williams arrest. She was found alive in Walterboro, South Carolina in January 2017. God always gives me what my heart desires, Mobley said. Money meant freedom to run the streets, to skip school, to do what she wanted. Gloria Williams with Alexis Manigo, about a month after shed kidnapped the infant in Florida. Ever year, on Mobleys birthday, Shanara had started a tradition of buying a cake and putting it in the freezer just in case Kamiyah showed up. In a lawsuit filed in October 1998, when Kamiyah was three months old, plaintiff Sheila Mobley said the hospital took 20 minutes to call the police after the baby was deemed missing. In March 2016, Colleton County, South Carolina court records show the teen received a ticket for driving without a license, just months prior to her eighteenth birthday. Indeed, Kamiyah Mobley has stuck by Williamss side. When we went to look at the video, you could only watch it in real time. I think she blames me that this woman is sitting in jail. In February, Williams changed her not guilty plea to guilty, essentially forgoing a full trial. The fake birth certificate listed that Kamiyah was born at Trident Medical Center in Charleston. 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