Andrea herself took the first step towards reconnecting with her father in 2023 when she contacted a man, she believed to be her biological father.
This prompted Detective Kealyn Nivakoff of the New Haven Police Department to reopen the case, ultimately leading to Andrea’s positive identification.
Family abductions remain one of the most common types of child disappearances in the United States.
The Reality of Family Abductions
According to NCMEC, they received 1,185 reports of family abductions in 2023 alone, and 59% of all AMBER Alerts that year were issued for cases involving a family member.
NCMEC Director of Communications, Angeline Hartmann, emphasized the dangers associated with these cases:
“One of the biggest misconceptions about family abduction cases is that the children are safe and ‘not really missing’ because they’re with a parent. At NCMEC, we know that there is a lot of emotion behind these cases, and these scenarios can be unpredictable and dangerous. These children ARE missing and living a life on the run with their kidnapper. They’re forced to lie about who they are and are often isolated. The recent recoveries of Andrea Reyes and Aziz Khan remind everyone that these kids can be found, no matter how long they’ve been gone.”
Legal Consequences
Abdul “Aziz” Khan was also found safe this month after being missing for seven years. He was discovered in Denver, Colorado.
