Sister in nationwide search for her missing twin

The flyer of kidnapped, Veronique Adams with the face of her sister Veronisha Adams. supplied

The flyer of kidnapped, Veronique Adams with the face of her sister Veronisha Adams. supplied

Published Jun 19, 2021

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Cape Town - Veronisha Adams is on a nationwide hunt for her sister who went missing 32 years ago and she hopes to find her by using her face.

Veronique was kidnapped on March 6, 1989, while in the care of her nanny in Extension 9, Eldorado Park in Gauteng, she was just 11 months old.

But Veronisha and Veronique have a thing in common: they are identical twins.

Missing Children South Africa’s Facebook page posted the flyer of the missing twin which reached over 7 000 people and had over 4 000 shares and 311 comments.

Since the post went live, the Adams family has received a few responses but say nothing concrete has landed in their hands yet to conduct a DNA test or contact the police to assist.

A woman from Durban has since reached out to the family, in search of her birth parents and images of her has since been shared with the twins’ mother, Junice Adams, 71.

The family said they were eager to follow up on all leads.

“A woman in Durban has sent pictures of herself and it has been sent to my mother, but again, it will have to be looked at, and at this stage, there is nothing concrete. We are open to DNA testing.”

Three years ago, the family carried out DNA testing from another woman who they believed could potentially be their long lost Veronique.

“We have done DNA testing before, three years ago with another woman. Unfortunately, the result was negative.

Veronisha’s face was placed on the flyers alongside the picture of her missing twin.

The poster of the missing twin had also been done when they were 24 in 2013.

Weekend Argus spoke to both Missing Children SA including Veronisha on their plight to find the kidnapped twin.

The flyer of kidnapped, Veronique Adams with the face of her sister Veronisha Adams in their 20s.supplied

Veronisha, who now lives in Johannesburg, had been in the care of her nanny named “Beauty” which the family believes was an alias used.

Their five-year-old sister had also been present.

The nanny had recently been employed and was to provide personal information, like her identity document and address, but never did.

Veronisha spoke to Weekend Argus this week, detailing the day her sister went missing after it was retold to her by her mother and uncle as she was just a baby at the time of the disappearance.

“We were in the care of the nanny that day including my sister who was five-years-old,” she said.

“My uncle lived around the corner and he would always visit us during the course of the day.

“When he arrived at our home, he noted that my twin sister was gone and that it was only myself and my older sister who was present.

“He immediately alerted my mother and that is how the search began and that time the family had to wait 24 hours before she could be officially reported missing.

“The nanny had said her name was Beauty, but that probably was not her real name. An identikit was drawn up back then and it was circulated.”

Veronisha said they updated the poster this year since they are in their 30s.

“My mother was always the one using my picture for the poster,” she said.

“I had the flyer updated this year since we are in our thirties and the response has been overwhelming on Facebook,” she said.

On Facebook, people in Cape Town and other provinces responded to the post.

The twins’ mother, Junice, said she still believes police could have found her child the same day she vanished if they began an immediate search and not wait for 24-hours.

She remembers receiving a frantic phone call from her brother who informed her that their nanny had disappeared with Veronique.

“My brother worked night shift and would often pop in during the day,” said Junice.

“When he arrived at the house, he saw that the nanny and Veronique were gone.

“He called me asking whether I had sent Beauty somewhere with Veronique and I said ’no’ and he said I must come home immediately.

“When we went to the police station, they said we need to wait 24 hours.

“But I believe if the police didn’t wait, I would have had my child today. School children saw the nanny with the baby that day.

“While we were at the police station, she passed the school children in the street and they asked whether she needed help and she refused it.

“Later that day, I stood in the front yard with Veronisha and the children asked me whether I had found my baby, I said ’no, this is her twin sister’. They told me the story of how they had seen her.”

Junice believes the kidnapper gave her daughter a different name: “When she started working by me she said her identity document was in Durban with her previous employers.

“She said she will go to Durban during the Easter Holidays to get it.

“I know she would have given my child a different name.”

Bianca Van Aswegen, the National Coordinator for Missing Children SA said they had shared the flyer and that there were no news leads on the case and that their organisation relied on donations: “It is a really an old case, and unfortunately, no new leads have come in regarding her.

“We are in need of financial assistance from corporations or public donations.

“We rely on sponsorship and donations to keep our organisation going and to be able to assist in all the cases of missing persons in SA.”

Missing Children SA was started in March 2007 following the kidnapping and murders of Sheldean Human of Pretoria and Annestacia Wieise, 11, of Mitchell’s Plain.

Visit the site on www.missingchildren.org.za

Their emergency number is 072 647 7464.

National police spokesperson Colonel Brenda Muridili said they were battling to get feedback from their missing persons desk because the offices in Gauteng were undergoing decontamination for Covid-19 and were unable to give any communication.

Weekend Argus

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