What was meant to be a possible breakthrough in a 40-year mystery has spiraled into heartbreak once again, after a woman claiming to be missing girl Katrice Lee allegedly traveled thousands of miles demanding a DNA test
KATRICE PAIN
Family agony as ‘imposter’ claiming to be missing girl who vanished in 1981 flies 3,500 miles after demanding DNA test
AN AMERICAN woman has flown to the UK claiming to be the missing daughter of an army veteran.
Katrice Lee went missing on her second birthday over four decades ago in Paderborn, Germany, while her father – Richard Lee – was stationed with the British army.
Richard Lee says scammers are using their family tragedy for profitCredit: NNP
Heather McCord, who says she is Katrice Lee, flew to the UK for a DNA testCredit: Facebook
The family say they have been plagued by fraudsters ever since the toddler’s disappearance.
Heather McCord, from Staten Island, New York, is the latest in a string of people claiming to be Katrice.
Richard has previously dismissed her claims as fraudulent and advised the public not to donate to her GoFundMe, which she set up to finance a trip to the UK to procure a DNA test.
The 76-year-old said: “They want their 15 minutes of fame, but sadly they are using the tragedy of my family’s situation to try to get it.”
Katrice Lee went missing over forty years ago in Paderborn, GermanyCredit: NNP
Richard says the family have been plagued by fraudsters ever since Katrice’s disappearanceCredit: NNP
Heather previously set up a GoFundMe to raise money for a DNA testCredit: NNP
The Lees are currently battling another scammer from Bedfordshire, who insists she is Katrice despite a negative DNA resultCredit: NNP
Another woman from Bedfordshire is also alleging to be the missing Katrice, despite receiving a negative DNA test result.
He added: “They put people off who genuinely believe that they are Katrice, and don’t know who their birth parents are.
“It’s those people I feel sorry for.”
The British Military Police (BMP) confirmed Heather’s arrival at an airport in London this month, where she was handed a DNA test.
It is understood that she has now returned to the US and is awaiting results.
Before she arrived, the BMP sent Richard a letter which read: “As you are aware from various media reports, an individual from the US has made claims of being Katrice.”
It added that Heather had been unable to substantiate the claims up until then, and that she had dismissed the BMP’s advice to engage with local law enforcement instead.
In response to her arrival, Richard, from Hartlepool, said: “This woman didn’t have to come to the United Kingdom. She was informed all she had to do was go to the authorities in America.
“But she claimed they wouldn’t help her and she continued to raise funds.
“If she genuinely believed she was Katrice, she should have used the correct channels.”
He added that the second alleged fraudster from Bedfordshire also insists she is Katrice despite receiving a negative DNA result in 2020.
“That’s the difference with these two individuals. There is no dignity in what they’ve been doing,” said the 76-year-old army veteran.
Richard said he had no qualms about confronting Heather – but doubted she had the courage to meet him.
“My family is still under attack from individuals who claim to be Katrice, knowing that they are not. I believe that it is harassment,” he said.
“Every time it happens it diverts attention away from the search for my daughter.”
It comes after the Lees discovered Heather’s GoFundMe earlier this year, flagged by his other daughter, Natasha Walker.
The fundraiser, which garnered around $217 from sympathetic donors, read: “It’s been 44 years since the disappearance.
“All I want is to prove who I am and be reunited with my family… I want justice and there are many reasons for me to believe I am her.
“I also remember the day I was kidnapped and who did it. Any help would be very greatly appreciated. Thank you so much in advance.”
Richard said: “I have no idea if the American woman wants to come up here.
“But at the end of the day I’m a grown man. If she wishes to confront me, she can confront me. But I don’t think she would man up to that.”
The Lees have been targeted by scammers in the past, including Heidi Robinson, 40, who used an image of Katrice as her Facebook profile picture when she reached out to them in 2019.
She was sentenced to 18 weeks in jail, suspended for two years at Wirral Magistrates’ Court, after pleading guilty to a malicious communications offence.
Another woman, Donna Wright, 33, admitted sending offensive messages to Katrice’s family in 2013.
Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court heard how Wright had believed she was Katrice and had made contact with the family.
When a DNA test proved she was not the missing girl, Wright continued to send messages to a Facebook page dedicated to the search for Katrice.
She was handed a 12-week jail sentence suspended for 18 months.
The Sun has contacted Heather McCord for comment.
CRE: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/39467405/baby-girl-snatched-scammer/
