The disappearance of Madeleine McCann in 2007 is the sum of every parent's nightmare: A little girl vanishes from her bed in the night, there are no indications where she's gone, and the police appear incapable of even remotely helping.
So even as remote as it seems, the possibility that Madeleine may have finally been found is likely a glimmer of hope, however faint, for her mother and father:
Gerry and Kate McCann, whose 3-year-old daughter, Madeleine, disappeared on vacation in Portugal over 15 years ago, are following up on Julia Faustyna's claims that she is the kidnapped toddler, a source told the Daily Beast this week.
Faustyna, 21, became an internet sensation this month after she started posting on social media under the handle @iammadeleinemccann. Earlier this week, she updated her Instagram bio with "Kate and Gerry McCann agreed for DNA test!"
That the McCanns have agreed to do the test at all likely indicates that they consider her story at least possibly true, even if it seems unlikely to be so. Faustyna, on the other hand, seems completely convinced:
In one of her first Instagram posts, Faustyna writes that she does not remember most of her early life except "holidays in a hot place where was [a] beach and White or very light couloured [sic] buildings with apartaments [sic]."
Many of Faustyna's posts document apparent physical similarities between herself and Madeleine, including a distinctive brown smudge on both girls' right irises.
"I have similar eyes, shape of face, ears, lips, I had the gap between the teeths [as Madeleine]," she wrote in one post alongside several photos of both herself and the missing tot.
Still, there are signs that this woman may simply be disturbed and unwell herself:
"[Julia's] mental health at this moment is not good," spokesperson Dr. Fia Johansson, also known as "Persian Medium," shared in a video update to Faustyna's Instagram profile on Monday.
"She needs help," Johansson continued, noting that Faustyna's background is "challenging and messy."
