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Savanna Harris Todd, a South Carolina girl kidnapped by her mother when she was just 10 months old, has been found alive in Australia, 19 years later. She is now 20 and living under the name Samantha Geldenhuys. South Carolina Girl Kidnapped, Found 19 Years Later Savannah appeared at her mother’s side in court on Wednesday of last week, holding a sign that said, “We love you, Mom,” according to reports. Todd was living a “safe, healthy and otherwise living a normal life” in Queensland, U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles said in a statement regarding the development. Her mother, Dorothy Lee Barnett, was charged with international parental kidnapping and two counts of false statements in a passport application. She was captured back on November 4 following a joint investigation by Australian federal police and the FBI, ending a bizarre, two-decade saga. In 1994, a South Carolina court gave custody of Todd to her father, determining that Barnett had bipolar disorder. But rather than give her child up, she fled. For nearly 20 years, mother and child lived on the run, moving around under assumed names in South Africa, New Zealand, and finally, Australia. Jim Arnold, who was chief of police in Isle of Palms, S.C., at the time of the abduction, said he searched the Barnett’s home and found it in disarray. He said there were crawl spaces in closets and maps of cities and escape routes highlighted, with circles of places outside South Carolina and the U.S. Barnett is believed to have used a fake passport with help from Children of the Underground, a secret group who helps women stuck in abusive relationships. She will be extradited to the U.S. to face charges.

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Savanna Harris Todd, S.C. Girl Kidnapped as Baby, Found 19 Years Later