Shocking stories revealed by home DNA tests…tragic baby swap to incest romance & girl who nailed gran for tot’s ‘murder’
OVER the last 20 years, home DNA test kits have become a ‘fun’ gift, which help people trace their heritage.
But, as many families have found, the simple tests also have the power to unravel entire lives in an instant and leave loved ones grappling with devastating family secrets.
In some cases, the truth has brought joy, reuniting long-lost relatives, but for others, the results are nothing short of devastating.
From fertility clinic mix-ups to decades-old hospital blunders, the home DNA kits have exposed long-held secrets, and even put criminals behind bars.
This week 23andMe, the first company to supply home kits for DNA tests, filed for bankruptcy.
Its CEO, Anne Wojcicki, who co-founded the company in 2006, has now resigned as the business tries to sell itself under the supervision of a court.
The collapse came after the Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK’s data protection watchdog, revealed plans to fine the company £4.5million for a huge 2023 data breach which saw the intimate details of millions of customers stolen. The UK conducted a probe into the company alongside Canada‘s data watchdog.
With the company facing its own troubles, we look at the drama that has been caused by DNA test results.
Mother’s shock
In 2002, Lydia Fairchild, a mother from Washington State, US, was baffled when DNA tests showed she wasn’t the biological mother of her own children.
While tests confirmed the children’s father, they astonishingly suggested that Lydia had no biological connection.
In a 2006 interview, she said: “I knew that I carried them, and I knew that I delivered them. There was no doubt in my mind.”
As the test was part of an application for welfare, social services got involved and she was accused of fraud.
The breakthrough came when her defence lawyer discovered a similar case involving chimerism – a rare condition where an individual has two sets of DNA due to the absorption of a twin in utero.
Further testing revealed that Lydia was indeed a chimera and DNA from her cervical cells matched that of her children, confirming her maternity.
Switched at birth
In 2021, a routine DNA test led to the shocking discovery that two women in England had been switched at birth over five decades earlier.
Tony, who took the test, found that Claire was his full biological sister, not Jessica, the woman he had known as his sister for 54 years.
Both women were born in the same hospital in 1967 and a mix-up led to them being raised by each other’s biological families.
The revelation was emotionally complex, leading to feelings of betrayal and loss.
DNA Tests: What You Need to Know
HERE'S everything you need to know about DNA tests...
Types of DNA Tests:
Ancestry Testing: Discover your genetic heritage and ancestral origins.
Paternity Testing: Confirm biological relationships.
Health Screening: Identify genetic predispositions to certain health conditions.
Steps to Get a DNA Test:
Determine the Purpose: Establish why you need the test.
Choose a Provider: Select a reputable laboratory or service.
Order the Kit: Purchase the appropriate DNA test kit.
Collect the Sample: Follow instructions to gather a cheek swab or saliva sample.
Send the Sample: Mail the sample to the laboratory using the provided packaging.
Await Results: Wait for a few weeks for the analysis.
Review the Results: Interpret the results and seek professional advice if necessary.
Considerations:
– Privacy: Ensure the provider has robust privacy policies.
– Accuracy: Verify the accuracy rate of the test.
– Cost: Be aware of the total cost, including any hidden fees.
– Support: Look for providers that offer customer support for interpreting results.
The hospital admitted the mistake, and the families are currently awaiting compensation.
Their story was told in the BBC podcast, The Gift: Switched. Tony’s mum Joan spoke about meeting her biological daughter for the first time.
She said: “It just felt right. We hugged each other. I thought, ‘She looks just like I did in my younger days’. I just felt connected straight away with her.
“It was remarkable. I feel I’ve gained a daughter.”
Married ‘cousins’
In a tale that reads like a plot twist from a soap, Celina and Joseph Quinones, a married couple from Colorado, were stunned to learn that they are cousins – despite having been together for nearly two decades and sharing three children.
In 2018, Celina, intrigued by her heritage, decided to delve into her ancestry using a MyHeritage DNA test.
On receiving the results, she was shocked to find Joseph listed as a close relative.
The test indicated they are between second to seventh cousins, with the closest common ancestor likely to be a great-grandparent.
The discovery sent shockwaves through their family. Celina grappled with feelings of depression and questioned the foundation of their relationship.
Thoughts of separation crossed her mind, but the couple ultimately chose to remain together and their three children, initially confused, accepted the news with surprising ease.
Their eldest son remarked that it didn’t change their family dynamics.
Celina told People magazine: “I feel a little more free. Like, it is what it is. There are people that love no matter what or who, so why can’t I love my cousin by accident.”
Shocking incest
Victoria Hill, a 39-year-old licensed clinical social worker from Connecticut, experienced a life-altering revelation after taking a 23andMe DNA test in 2020, to gain insights into her health.
Instead, she uncovered a shocking family secret – her biological father was not the man who raised her, but her mother’s fertility doctor, Dr Burton Caldwell.
The situation took an even more startling turn when she discovered she had unknowingly dated her half-brother at high school.
In the early 2000s, Victoria and a fellow student began a relationship, unaware they shared the same biological father.
The family connection was revealed when her former boyfriend also took a DNA test.
Further investigations revealed that Dr. Caldwell had used his own sperm to inseminate numerous patients without their consent.
This led to at least 23 known half-siblings, some of whom attended the same schools and lived in close proximity.
Brotherly discovery
Walter Macfarlane and Alan Robinson, both residents of Hawaii, had been best friends for over 60 years.
Seeking insights into his ancestry, Walter used an online DNA matching service and discovered an extremely close match with a user named Robi737.
To their astonishment, Robi737 was Alan’s username.
Further investigation confirmed that they shared the same biological mother, revealing that the lifelong friends were actually half-brothers.
Their mum had used a pseudonym when she gave Alan up for adoption shortly after his birth.
In disbelief over the results, Alan described the moment he was given the news. “I was in denial,” he says. “We’ve known each other for so long, I thought he was just joking around
Walter, overjoyed by the discovery, said: “If we had known sooner we were brothers, we would have been contacting each other all the time.”
Solving a Cold Case
In 2022, Jenna Rose Gerwatowski inadvertently used an Ancestry DNA test to crack a chilling cold case and uncover a dark family secret.
Her routine DNA test led Michigan State Police to contact her, revealing a direct genetic link to the unsolved 1997 “Baby Garnet” case.
The infant’s remains had been found in an outhouse at Garnet Lake Campground in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Further investigation traced the lineage to Jenna’s mother, and ultimately to her grandmother, Nancy Ann Gerwatowski who lived in Wyoming.
Nancy – who was estranged from the family – was arrested in 2022, charged with murder, involuntary manslaughter and concealing a death.
She reportedly admitted to being the child’s mother, stating the baby died from asphyxiation at home, and she concealed the body in the outhouse.
Jenna shared her shocking discovery in a TikTok video that went viral, amassing millions of views.
“I had grown up knowing about the case my whole life and then come to find out it was my grandma that did it?” Jenna said.
Hidden heritage
Alice Collins Plebuch, who had always identified as Irish-American, decided to take a DNA test out of curiosity.
The results were startling: instead of purely Irish ancestry, her DNA showed significant Ashkenazi Jewish, Middle Eastern, and Eastern European heritage.
Confused, she began to wonder whether either her mother or grandmother had had an affair, but thought that highly unlikely.
Perplexed, Alice initiated a series of family-wide DNA tests, which she got from 23andMe. They revealed that her father was not the biological son of his parents.
After extensive research, it was revealed that her father had been accidentally switched at birth with another baby in the hospital.
Betrayed by doctor
In a shocking revelation, Kelli Rowlette discovered that her biological father was none other than her parent’s fertility doctor, Dr. Gerald Mortimer.
The unsettling truth came to light in July 2017 when Rowlette submitted a DNA sample to Ancestry.com, expecting to learn more about her heritage.
Instead, the results indicated a parent-child relationship with Dr. Mortimer, leaving her bewildered and prompting a deeper investigation.
In the early 1980s, Sally Ashby and her then-husband, Howard Fowler, sought Dr. Mortimer’s assistance in Idaho Falls due to fertility challenges.
Dr. Mortimer recommended artificial insemination using a mix of Fowler’s sperm and that of an anonymous donor.
The couple specified that the donor should be a college student over six feet tall with brown hair and blue eyes.
But Dr. Mortimer allegedly used his own sperm for the procedure, leading to Rowlette’s birth in May 1981.
On discovering this betrayal, Rowlette and her parents filed a lawsuit in 2018 against Dr. Mortimer, his wife, and Obstetrics and Gynecology Associates of Idaho Falls.
The suit alleged medical negligence, fraud, battery, emotional distress and breach of contract but the case was dropped in 2021.
Serial killer nabbed
In a groundbreaking twist to a decades-long manhunt, investigators harnessed the power of genealogy websites to unmask the notorious Golden State Killer.
He was responsible for a reign of terror across California during the 1970s and 1980s.
In 2018, detectives uploaded DNA evidence from the crime scenes to GEDmatch, a public genealogy database.
This innovative approach led them to distant relatives of the unknown suspect. Through meticulous family tree analysis, they zeroed in on Joseph James DeAngelo, a former police officer.
To confirm their suspicions, authorities surveilled DeAngelo and collected discarded items containing his DNA.
The results were damning: a definitive match to the Golden State Killer’s genetic profile. This pivotal evidence culminated in DeAngelo’s arrest in April 2018.
DeAngelo pleaded guilty to 13 counts of first-degree murder, in March 2020, and received multiple life sentences.
IVF Nightmare
In 2020, Donna and Vanner Johnson from Utah purchased an at-home DNA test to explore their family’s ancestry.
The results revealed that their 12-year-old son, Tim, conceived via IVF in 2008, was not biologically related to Vanner.
This unexpected discovery led them to suspect a mix-up at the University of Utah’s Center for Reproductive Medicine, where they had undergone fertility treatments.
Further investigation led them to Devin and Kelly McNeil, a Colorado couple who had also undergone IVF at the same clinic around the same time.
It turned out that Tim was actually the McNeils’ biological child
The McNeils had a son, Talon, conceived through IVF and two younger children conceived naturally. It turned out that Tim was actually the McNeils’ biological child
Concerned about a potential mix-up, the McNeils tested Talon, confirming he was biologically theirs.
Despite the initial shock, the McNeils decided not to split Tim from the only parents he’s ever known. Instead, both families kept in touch and share regular updates about Tim’s milestones.