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FaceApp-style tech helps family to reunite with their missing child after 18 years

Though Yu Weifeng’s kidnapping case was initially closed after a few years, the investigators in Shenzhen’s Futian District again reopened it.

Updated on: Jul 21, 2019, 12:59:13 IST
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A 21-year-old Chinese man has been reunited with his biological family after almost two decades when police decided to use FaceApp-style technology to predict his present appearance. The man, Yu Weifeng, was abducted 18 years ago in 2001 from a construction site where his biological father used to work as a foreman, reports Metro.

The investigators used software similar to FaceApp to predict the boy’s present look (representational image). (HT File Photo)
The investigators used software similar to FaceApp to predict the boy’s present look (representational image). (HT File Photo)

Though Yu Weifeng’s kidnapping case was initially closed after a few years, the investigators in Shenzhen’s Futian District again reopened it, reports Metro. Then they used AI-based software, much like the recently trending FaceApp, to predict what the missing boy might look like at present before searching their huge database to locate him. They were able to single out Weifeng, who is currently studying in provincial capital Guangzhou, after sorting through almost 100 candidates.

“When we found him, he refused to believe that he was a kidnapped child, but DNA confirmed that he was a match with his biological parents,” the case’s investigating officer Zheng Zhenhai told to Metro.

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Trisha Sengupta

Trisha Sengupta is a Chief Content Producer at Hindustan Times with over six years of digital newsroom experience. Specialising in high-engagement storytelling, she blends viral trends with traditional journalism to cover the intersection of technology, finance, and human emotion. Her reporting spans real estate and personal finance struggles in hubs like Bengaluru and Gurgaon, the NRI experience, and corporate shifts like tech layoffs. Trisha also frequently tracks global figures and writes human interest stories. Offline, Trisha is an avid reader, history enthusiast and solo traveler. She balances her journalism career with family life while actively integrating AI tools into her modern storytelling approach.

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