Adopting a child is one of the most noble decisions a person can make. Not only does it drastically improve the child’s well-being, but it also enriches the family who welcomes them into their home.
But like anything else, adoption is not without its dark side. When this all-American family took in a young African girl, they never suspected she had such a complicated past. What she told them next revealed one of the most vile and corrupt schemes you can imagine.
When Adam and Jessica Davis first met Namata in 2015, it was like love at first sight. They were so caught up in their idea of the perfect family, that they had no idea something was terribly wrong.
Adam and Jessica had been considering adopting a child for quite some time. Like most other prospective parents, they had nothing but good intentions and put their complete trust in the system.
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They already had four children of their own. With those kids getting older, however, the couple felt that they were ready for another. But having their own didn’t make the most sense to them.
Especially with the staggering number of needy kids around the world, Jessica and Paul figured that adoption was the most ethical option. So, they started to look around…
They began their search with an Ohio-based agency that was called, strangely enough, European Adoption Consultants. Before long, they informed the Davises that they located the perfect match.
A Ugandan girl named Namata was in dire need of a good family. They told Adam and Jessica that her father died, that her abusive mother didn’t want her, and that she had no future in her small village.
It was a hefty adoption fee of $15,000, but that didn’t matter to the Davises. They knew what they had to do. As soon as they could, they flew over to Uganda to pick up their new daughter.
Namata was everything the Davises could have hoped for, though she was living in a decrepit facility called God’s Mercy Orphanage. They were relieved to get her out of such a horrible place.
Adam and Jessica finalized the adoption process and introduced Namata — who they nicknamed ‘Mata’ — to the rest of the family. It seemed like a perfect fit!
Jessica Davis
Even though she came from a world away, Mata took to American life quite quickly. She enjoyed school and had a ton of new experiences. Her English got quite good as well.
After about a year, once Mata’s language skills improved and she got very close to her family, she opened up more and more about her past life. Some of the details she mentioned, though, didn’t quite add up.
She talked about her village, her mother, her siblings, and how happy all of those things made her. Mata’s account totally contradicted her adoption file. A bombshell realization then dawned upon Adam and Jessica.
Jessica Davis
Mata wasn’t an orphan. She already had a loving family, one that certainly was not interested in giving her away. So how did she end up in that dingy orphanage?
Adam and Jessica contacted Keren Riley, an activist who helps reunite trafficked children with their mothers. Riley surmised there was something illegal about Namata’s adoption, and that her birth family was still out there looking for her.
Reunite
But Keren also had good news: she found Namata’s mother. They set up a Skype call between the States and Uganda, allowing the mother to speak to her daughter again. She also filled in her side of the story.
The adoption agency came to her village and offered to match kids with sponsors for an American education. Many parents participated. What they didn’t realize was that the agency was seizing custody and selling the children to families in the U.S.
As much as they loved having Mata in their family, Adam and Jessica knew the best place for her was back in her village. They soon prepared to take her back home.
CNN
It was a joyful reunion in Uganda. Namata’s family felt elated to have her back, and they were so grateful to meet the American strangers who took such good care of their daughter and sister.
CNN
Namata was certainly lucky. However, the Davises learned a troubling fact in Uganda: European Adoption Consultants sent away other children from the village. A couple others had returned, but some had not.
Of course, the agency denied any wrongdoing in the matter. But that didn’t stop the FBI from raiding their office and stripping them of the ability to transfer child guardianships.
However, there are still many children out there who were stolen from their families and shipped overseas. We can only hope there are more families out there like the Davises willing to step in and return the children to their rightful homes.
It’s a real miracle that Adam and Jessica reunited Namata with her family back home. Let’s hope the other children out there have similar endings…
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