Colombian adoptee discovers she was reunited with wrong family by Dutch TV show

A Colombian adoptee, Marthainès de Vries, has found her true biological family after discovering that the Dutch TV program "Spoorloos" mistakenly reunited her with the wrong family over two decades ago. After years of uncertainty and troubling questions, De Vries, now 43, has uncovered the truth, revealing the significant errors made in the process.

In 2001, "Spoorloos" aired a segment in which De Vries, a Colombian adoptee, was connected with Maria Belén Jaramillo, whom the program identified as her biological mother. The reunion followed a search in Medellín, Colombia, where the program distributed posters featuring De Vries' childhood photo, birthdate, and the name of the woman they believed was her mother: Maria Ilduara Jaramillo. The program did not conduct DNA testing at the time, and the process relied heavily on circumstantial evidence. After the airing of the episode, De Vries lived with the belief that she had found her biological mother.

However, doubts about the accuracy of the reunion began to surface over the years. The name "Jaramillo" is common in the region, and the second first name, "Belén," did not match the name on De Vries' adoption documents. According to "Spoorloos," this discrepancy was explained by the claim that Belén had used a false name due to lack of insurance. But De Vries, then a 19-year-old, trusted the program's judgment. She now questions the accuracy of their investigation, noting that Belén was unable to recall key details about her birth and even had difficulty remembering De Vries' birthday.

De Vries maintained close ties with the family of Maria Belén after their reunion, living and working in Colombia for nearly seven years. She even had two Colombian nephews and a niece live with her family in Friesland for a year. However, her connection to the Jaramillo family began to unravel in recent months when she discovered that the woman she had believed to be her biological mother was not, in fact, her mother at all.

Through her own research and communication with the "Spoorloos" team, De Vries confirmed her suspicions. In November, she received a phone call from a relative in Colombia, who revealed that Belén was not her mother and that the family had always known this. "Belén is not your real mother, and I knew that from the start," De Vries was told by her relative. The relative recalled that when Belén returned from her first meeting with a "Spoorloos" representative in 2001, she told the family that the story of the woman they were searching for did not match her own. However, the "Spoorloos" team insisted on continuing with the reunion.

Despite having doubts for years, De Vries refrained from confronting her Colombian family. She feared that doing so could damage the relationships she had with them. "I longed for the truth but couldn't bring myself to ask the difficult questions," she said. Yet, as more critical questions emerged about the accuracy of "Spoorloos'" reunions, she could no longer suppress her suspicions.

In December, De Vries took a significant step by submitting her DNA to an international database. Working with Colombian adoptees Fiona Teggatz and Barbara Quee, who help others search for biological relatives, De Vries uncovered key documents, including one from Colombia's child welfare agency, ICBF, that listed the name of her true grandmother: Matilde Rosa Roldan. Soon, De Vries was able to trace her biological family and, in January, began video calls with her real family members.

De Vries learned that she has six older half-siblings, one of whom is deceased. Her biological mother, Maria Ilduara Roldan, passed away in 2010, and her biological father, Rigoberto Jaramillo, died in 2012. DNA testing confirmed the match, with 99.9 percent certainty, establishing her connection to her real family.

"This is the first time in my life I've seen photos of people who resemble me," De Vries said. "When I shared the news with my real Colombian niece, she said that I had such a kind mother. It broke me."

The discovery, while bringing De Vries a sense of closure, has also left her deeply saddened by the lost time. "I have cried so much since Belén passed away in 2016. She must have known she wasn't my mother. We've been lied to for so long. It's a traumatic experience."

De Vries says the emotional toll of the ordeal is compounded by the financial support she had provided to her Colombian family over the years, including funding flights, vacations, and education. "I don't want to think this, but sometimes I wonder: was there a financial motive behind it?" she said, reflecting on the gifts and financial support she offered the family.

Her story is part of a larger pattern of errors by "Spoorloos," which has been criticized for its lack of thorough investigation into the biological connections it facilitates. In June 2024, a report by de Volkskrant revealed that other Colombian adoptees had also been mistakenly reunited with the wrong families through the program. KRO-NCRV, the broadcaster behind "Spoorloos," has not responded to questions regarding the errors made in the De Vries case.

Despite her grief, De Vries is now focused on building relationships with her real family. She plans to visit Colombia soon to meet her biological relatives. However, the pain of losing two decades with her real family lingers. "If 'Spoorloos' had done their job right, I could have spent those nine years with my real mother and 11 years with my real father. Now they're gone. I can never get that time back."