Shivangi Sinha
Kamiyah Mobley was only a few hours old when she was abducted from a hospital in Jacksonville, Florida, by a woman named Gloria Williams in 1998. In the years that followed, she was raised with immense love and care and Gloria treated her as her own daughter. As Kamiyah grew older, she began to notice inconsistencies and developed suspicions, which eventually led to police involvement and the truth coming to light. Raised as Alexis Kelli Manigo, her remarkable story became the inspiration for Lifetime’s 2020 film, ‘Stolen by My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story.’
Kamiyah Mobley Did Not Report Her Kidnapper to the Police
Kamiyah Teresiah Tasha Mobley was born on July 10, 1998, to Shanara “Starr” Mobley and Craig Aiken. Shanara was just 16 years old when she gave birth at the University Medical Center in Jacksonville, Florida, but she was excited about stepping into the role of a mother. However, just eight hours later, a woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform walked in, had a brief conversation, and then walked away with the newborn. Alarm quickly spread, but the woman, Gloria Williams, had managed to forge the baby’s documents and went on to raise Kamiyah as her own daughter in Walterboro, South Carolina.
Gloria later detailed that she had allegedly been in an abusive relationship at the time and had recently suffered a miscarriage. This explanation meant her family did not question her when she walked in with a baby, allowing her to keep Kamiyah without much suspicion. She was given the name Alexis Kelli Manigo and was raised to have the best life possible. She grew up alongside Gloria’s two other children, whose custody Gloria had lost around the time of the abduction. Kamiyah graduated from Colleton County High School, but grew increasingly suspicious as she got older. In 2015, while applying for a job, the woman she knew as her mother refused to provide her with a Social Security number or a birth certificate.
Gloria eventually decided to come clean and told Kamiyah the truth, but the latter did not immediately report it to the police. She still felt affection for Gloria and did not want her to get into trouble. Kamiyah reconnected with her biological family. She spoke with her father and grandmother over FaceTime and made plans to meet them in person. However, an anonymous tip was sent to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which brought the truth to light. Kamiyah’s DNA confirmed that she is not Gloria’s biological daughter. In January 2017, Gloria was arrested for kidnapping and interfering with custody. In February 2018, she pled guilty and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Kamiyah Mobley is Building a Life With Her Biological Family Today
Kamiyah stayed in South Carolina for a few years and maintained a close relationship with Gloria Williams even after her arrest. She was reunited with her biological parents at the Walterboro Police Department in January 2017, but it was not a fairytale ending. Her mother, Shanara “Starr” Mobley, struggled to understand the attachment Kamiyah still had to Gloria, especially seeing that Gloria was still saved as “Mommy” on her daughter’s phone. Starr demanded the harshest punishment for Gloria. Kamiyah received significant media attention and participated in various interviews, including with ‘Good Morning America,’ where she explained that she goes by both Alexis and Kamiyah. She said that those who knew her called her Alexis, but her official documents listed her name as Kamiyah. She does not mind being called either.
Kamiyah shared that she wanted to attend college and build a life for herself, and that she refused to let this single event define her entire identity. It was reported that, for a time, she and her biological parents even cut off contact due to Kamiyah’s insistence on staying in touch with the woman who had raised her. In 2019, she moved to Florida to live with her biological family, gradually rebuilding that relationship and finding happiness with them. In 2022, she even wrote a handwritten letter supporting Gloria’s request for a reduced sentence, stating that Gloria had been her mother and that she stood by her.
Kamiyah is now 27 years old and living in Florida. She describes herself as a “Florida Baby But The South Raised Me.” She has built a strong presence on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok, with the former boasting around 58.5k followers who consistently support and cheer her on in all her endeavors. Kamiyah has also been strengthening her relationship with her three sisters, Shuriah, Shakaria, and Shadawn, and even attended one of their weddings in 2021. She proudly calls herself the “Starr child” and is happy with where she is. Despite a long and challenging journey, she has remained strong in finding her own place in the world.
Read More: Morgan Metzer: Where is the Kidnapping Survivor Now?
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