Missing girl who vanished without a trace more than two decades ago 'may have been found'
A woman in Texas has come forward on TikTok claiming to be Diamond Bradley, a woman who vanished from Chicago over 20 years ago at just three years of age.
Diamond and her sister Tionda, who was ten at the time, went missing from their mother's apartment in 2001, sparking the largest missing persons' investigation in Chicago's history.
The girls' mother, Tracey Bradley, had left her apartment at 35th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue for work around 6 am local time, leaving them with strict instructions to 'not let anyone inside'.
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The TikTok video came earlier this week and was filmed in a parking lot in Houston during night hours.
The person filming says: "Here with Diamond Bradley" and shows a phone screen that displays the missing persons poster with Diamond's photo along with an illustration of what she may look like today.
The video then pans to a woman stood beside a car who she claims to be Diamond, asking her to show her scar on her scalp - a feature that young Diamond had that was described as distinctive.
The woman then turns her head to the camera to show a similar-looking scar in her hairline.
The woman in the video claims to be unsure of what happened to Tionda, who has not been heard from since the day she disappeared. However, over a dozen people have come forward claiming to be the missing girls over the years.
Sheliah Bradley-Smith, Diamond and Tionda's aunt who never gave up searching for her nieces, hopes that this could be a breakthrough but has her reservations, admitting that the family has had similar experiences before.
Bradley-Smith says this time it is different as the woman in the video has decided to submit a DNA test to the FBI, even undergoing fingerprinting.
The aunt was told the results were expected to be expedited, though it could take a few weeks before they have some answers.
The woman in the TikTok video even reached out to Bradley-Smith directly with her claims.
"She said she has information about Diamond Bradley, and I say what about?" Bradley-Smith told NBC 5. "Well, she says, 'I am Diamond Bradley.'"
Bradley-Smith urged her to go to police to prove her identity, which the woman was very willing to do.
"I've never known or experienced somebody so eager to tear down the doors of the FBI to prove who they are. So that gives me a different dynamic of hope," Bradley-Smith said, adding: "All I can do is hope it is her."
Harley Young