Lyneth arrived at a dollar store on Islington Avenue, Toronto, where her ex-husband was supposed to meet her with their son, Jermaine.
She waited and waited, but they never came. Where were they?
Missing
It's now 4:20 PM, and Jermaine and Alan still haven't shown up.
Something wasn't right. Lyneth called her husband, but he didn't pick up. With her heart pounding in her chest, she went to the police station and filed a missing persons report.
No Traces Of Jermaine
The police conducted an extensive search, but there was no trace of Jermaine or his father. Lyneth was devastated.
She didn't know what to do with herself as she waited by the phone to hear from the authorities. Slowly, months turned into years, and the next thing the grieving mother knew, it was her son's 25th birthday.
Not Giving Up
Many agencies tried to solve this strange case, but there were still no leads. But Lyneth never gave up on her little boy and continued searching for him.
In 1989, she made an appearance in the Toronto Star, hoping to raise even more awareness. Some people believed that her ex-husband had kidnapped Jermaine, but there was no solid evidence.
Ted Davis
When a former policeman Ted Davis heard about Lyneth's story, he promised her and her family that he would try his best to find Jermaine and bring him home.
Davis had been investigating for the Missing Children Society of Canada for over 30 years and believed he could solve this peculiar case.
At The Conference
Finally, in 2016, there came a break in Jermaine's case.
That year, Davis attended a conference alongside representatives of the United States and members of the Toronto police. During the event, the attendees started discussing Jermaine's case.
Interviews
The investigators began contacting Alan's acquaintances in hopes of solving this bizarre case.
Some people believed that Alan fled to Connecticut with Jermaine and hid there. But it wasn't until the investigators interviewed one of Alan's closest friends that the authorities would finally locate Jermaine.
Hailee Randolph DeSouza
It turns out that Jermaine's father had created a brand new identity, a new name, and new alias.
His new name was Hailee Randolph DeSouza. The authorities searched social media and official databases, and finally, they found a match.
It's A Match
A man and son were living in a town close to Hartford.
The authorities asked for the help of forensic experts, and finally, in October 2018, the team confirmed that these two were Jermaine and Alan. "This is the police, open up!" a policeman shouted as he knocked on Alan's door.
Inside The Apartment
When the police entered Alan's apartment, they saw an elderly man sitting in the corner of his bedroom.
But where was Jermaine?
Finally Found
Suddenly, the police heard a man's voice. "Dad?" A middle-aged man with big brown eyes came out of his room. He looked just like Jermaine!
For decades, Jermaine had been living a life full of lies. When the father and son arrived in the United States 31 years ago, Alan managed to get fake documents, and the two settled in Connecticut.
Living A Lie
There, Alan found a job as an engineer and a trucker, and his son worked for the state.
Jermaine had no idea that his mother had been searching for him for over three decades because Alan told him Lyneth was dead.
Devastated
When Jermaine found out the truth, he burst into tears. How could a father do something like that to his own child?
Then a sudden realization hit him. His mother is, in fact, alive!
In Shock
Lyneth couldn't believe her ears when she heard that Jermaine had been found.
She arrived at the pickup area at the Connecticut airport and waited for her son there.
Reunited
Suddenly, she saw a tall man walking towards her. She immediately recognized him. It was her son, Jermaine!
They ran towards eachother with tears running down their faces. They both have a lot of catching up to do!