Roma Gypsy Girl Sparks Thousands of Missing Child Inquiries; Three Other Children Found at the Camp
A Roma Gypsy girl that was found in a camp in Greece has prompted thousands of people to contact authorities to see if the Roma Gypsy girl is related to other missing child cases.
The unidentified Roma Gypsy girl has been called "Maria" in media reports. After she was found in a gypsy camp in Greece, thousands of people called authorities to see if the found Roma Gypsy girl might lead to clues in other missing child cases.
Smile of the Child charity spokeman Panagiotis Pardalis told ABCNews.com that the group has fielded over 8,000 calls from all over the word, including the United States and Canada, about the Roma Gypsy girl.
The blond Roma Gypsy girl is about four years old. She was found in a Roma gypsy settlement in central Greece. DNA tests proved that she was not related to the couple who said they were her parents.
Paradalis said "We don't have any clue on [her origin]. This makes this story a mystery so far. What we're trying to do now is have experts from forensics and anthropologists ... determine her origin."
Paradalis said the Roma Gypsy girl is in good health but is undergoing tests in a hospital to determine her origin.
Paradalis said "She's feeling very happy. She's playing with her toys she's communicating with social workers and psychologists. She's improving day by day. After testing is completed she will be transferred to a home associated with Smile of the Child, as investigators work to uncover her origin.”
Authorities in Greece have gone to Interpol for help.
The lawyer for the couple who claim to be the mystery Roma Gypsy girl’s parents, Marietta Palavra, said a foreign stranger entrusted them with the Roma Gypsy girl through an intermediary who said the birth mother could not support the child.
Marietta Palavra said told the Associated Press in Athens "Just because (the suspect) had forged documents, it doesn't make her a kidnapper. The couple loved the girl as if she were their own."
Police found the Roma gypsy girl during a drug and weapons raid on Roma community near Farsala.
Two other little girls and a boy were also found with Maria at the camp.