Reported missing 30 years ago, a woman from Pennsylvania was found in a residence for the elderly in Puerto Rico, announced her family and the police at a press conference.
Now 83, Patricia Kopta disappeared in the summer of 1992. However, her husband, Bob Kopta, reported her missing a few months later. At that time, he explained to the authorities that his wife tended to disappear for short periods.
It was an International Criminal Police Organization officer and a social worker in Puerto Rico who informed police last year, saying they believed the wanted lady was now living in an old people’s residence.
“What they told us was that she arrived in 1999, when she was found in need on the streets of Puerto Rico,” said Brian Kohlhepp, deputy chief of Ross Township.
In particular, she refused to reveal any information about her past, he said. The woman now has dementia.
Known as “a street preacher” in Pittsburgh, she used to approach passers-by telling them she saw the Virgin Mary. She also predicted the end of the world.
According to the police, the disappearance of Patrica Kopta was not seen as suspicious, because she had “a history of mental health and she had already told her family that she wanted to leave”. The woman also feared that those around her would place her in a residence for the elderly.
Ms. Kopta had previously spoken of her desire to go to Puerto Rico, according to her husband, who says he put missing persons notices in local newspapers.
It was after a nine-month process that the police were able to determine that the lady was indeed Patricia Kopta, thanks to DNA samples provided by her sister, Gloria Smith.
“We really thought she was dead all those years,” she said.