Baby kidnap case re-opens

UK, 7 October 2003 -- Scotland Yard re-opened today its investigation into the baffling disappearance of Britain's youngest kidnap victim.

Five-month-old Ames Glover vanished after being taken from the back of his father's car in west London in 1990.

The abduction shocked the country but despite an international investigation amid fears Ames had been murdered, no trace was found

Ames's mother, Shanika Ondaatjie, still clings to the hope that her baby boy is still alive.

Today - on what is Ames's 14th birthday - Ms Ondaatjie and the Metropolitan police appealed for fresh information and a reward of ?10,000 is now on offer.

In an emotional appeal, Ms Ondaatjie said: "I need to know what happened. I am desperately clinging to hope but I need to know, even if it is bad news."

Ames's father Paul Glover was the prime suspect as no one has corroborated his version of events. He was arrested but released without charge and has always denied involvement.

Police believe Ames might have been smuggled out of the country. Detectives travelled to Ghana, from where Mr Glover comes, but found no trace.

They considered constructing an image of what Ames might look like but, at five months, his bone structure had not developed enough.

Ames disappeared on 5 February 1990. The infant was with Mr Glover in his car when he stopped in Southall.

Mr Glover told police he left Ames in the locked car and used a cashpoint and bought a take-away before returning 15 minutes later. The child was gone.

The police found no one who saw Ames being taken in a busy street, or even remembers seeing him in the vehicle. One troubling inconsistency in Mr Glover's story is that he claimed the kidnappers must have broken into his car but there was no sign of damage.

Sri Lankan-born Ms Ondaatjie clings to the memory of her son.

"It is very difficult. I always said I wanted to get to the bottom of this and I will not be satisfied until I do," she said.

"Somebody out there knows what happened. They need to contact the police.

"I feel that, for 13 years, somebody has been holding the key to what happened. I want that person to come forward with the key so I can unlock what happened. It has been hard but I am a fighter."

It was only when she spoke of Ames, rather than the mystery of his disappearance, that her composure cracked.

"I only have a few photographs of him and it is getting hard to remember."

Ms Ondaatjie fears Mr Glover was responsible. The couple had married the previous September, a month after the birth, but had separated before the abduction. They had moved out of their home and Ms Ondaatjie was in a hostel in Greenford.

"I was having a life of my own," she said. "He was not going to let me do that, he was jealous."

Detective Superintendent Gordon Briggs said: "We need to prosecute those who know. We hope old allegiances will not be the same and people will come forward to tell us the truth."

Anyone with information should contact the incident room on 020 8284 8561 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.