Man kidnapped by gang aged four is reunited with mother after 33 years

Chinese man who was abducted by a child trafficking gang when he was four is reunited with his mother 33 years later after police match a drawing he made from memory of his original home to a village

• Married father, 37, reunited with Chinese birth mother 33 years he was abducted
• Li Jingwei, 37, grew up in Henan, 1,200 miles from his original home in Yunnan  
• Police matched drawings Mr Jingwei made from memory with his hometown
• Mr Jingwei met his mum on New Year’s Day after more than three decades away

A married father who was kidnapped when he was just four years old by a child-trafficking gang was reunited with his family after 33 years when he drew a map of his original home from memory. 

Li Jingwei, 37, grew up in Henan, north-central China, after he was taken but said he had ‘countless nights of yearning’ and was ‘homesick since I was little’.

When he learnt about other abducted children that were reunited with relatives, such as Guo Xinzhen, Mr Jingwei shared a map he had drawn of his home village. 

Li Jingwei, 37, (left) was reunited with his birth mother (right) in Yunnan, southwest China, after 33 years

The detail of his maps, which included what certain homes looked like and what villagers used to cook rice, surprised many people.

Police matched the map to a village in Zhaotong, a city in the mountains of Yunnan, southwest China.

DNA tests confirmed Mr Jingwei was the woman’s missing son and the pair were reunited on New Year’s Day. 

Mr Jingwei was abducted when he was four years old but drew maps of his village every day to make sure he didn’t forget his home

Mr Jingwei was taken in 1989 and given to a family in Lankao, around 1,200 miles from his original home.

He drew pictures of his home at least once a day to remember his birthplace.

As a child he was taken by a bald neighbour who tempted him with a toy, Mr Jingwei told China’s The Paper. 

Police used the maps Mr Jingwei (pictured) made to connect him with his mother, and verified the match with DNA tests

Mr Jingwei had been inspired by the story of Guo Gangtang (pictured) and his son Guo Xinzhen, who was snatched aged two in front of the family’s home in Shandong province in 1997 

Many children who are reunited with their original family after being abducted have been reluctant to bring legal action against their foster parents because they have grown to love them.

Mr Jingwei, who is married with children, said the family that adopted him taught him ‘the principles of being a human’.

He said this was ‘so that I could study hard and become a talent in the future’.

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