A pending DNA test could confirm whether a Texas woman is a missing toddler from Chicago who vanished more than 20 years ago, WLS-TV reports.
On July 6, 2001, 3-year-old Diamond Bradley (pictured) and her 10-year-old sister, Tionda were reported missing. The girls’ mother told police that when she got home from work that day, she found a note allegedly written by Tionda stating that the pair were going to a playground and a store.
Police searched for the girls but came up empty.
Now a woman in Texas has posted a video to TikTok alleging that she is Diamond Bradley, pointing to a scar on her face. The child had a scar on the left side of her scalp when she disappeared, according to the FBI.
“Here with Diamond Bradley, this is Diamond Bradley can I see your scar?” a person off-camera states in the video. “She still has that scar.”
The woman also has said that she remembered being around Tionda but was taken away and never saw her sister again, Bradley’s great aunt, Sheliah Bradley-Smith, told WLS-TV.
@imher_bigtootieee Diamond Bradley missing for 21 years 😫🙏🏽 #diamondbradley #tiondaanddiamondbradley #justicefordiamondbradley
Bradley-Smith said she has been contacted by the woman in the TikTok video, but added that the family has received numerous false claims over the years of people asserting to be the missing girls.
“It’s been heartbreaking. It will lift you up, and give you the hope, and slam you back down to the ground,” Bradley-Smith told WLS-TV.
On May 17, the FBI reportedly collected DNA samples from the woman in the TikTok video. Bradley-Smith said this is the first time that one of the people claiming to be Diamond was eager to take a DNA test.
“I’m shocked she stepped up and took the initiative to go to the FBI,” Bradley-Smith told the Chicago Sun-Times. “Either something has to mentally be going on, or that someone truly believes they’re that person.”
Previous Coverage
Largest search in Chicago: Diamond, 3, and Tionda, 10, still missing
Results of the DNA test may take two to 14 days, according to the newspaper.
Family members doubt that Tionda wrote the note because the words used were likely too advanced for a 10-year-old. The family also believes that Tionda would have just called her mom instead of leaving a note.
“I personally don’t believe that I’m living this nightmare,” Bradley-Smith told NBC5 Chicago. “You have your hopes up, especially with this happening before. But at the same time you can’t ignore, I have to follow through on any tip that comes.”
To report information about the case, call the FBI at 312-421-6700, the Chicago Police Department at 312-747-5789, or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST.
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[Featured image: Diamond Bradley/National Center for Missing & Exploited Children]
