On Saturday during CrimeCon Denver, attendees united to offer support to a heartbroken mother who has been tirelessly searching for her son, kidnapped 45 years ago, by giving her air hugs.
The session on Saturday, led by Angeline Hartmann, the Director of Communications for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), focused on the 1980 case of Kevin Verville Jr.’s disappearance.
On June 14, 1980, Kevin was born to parents Kevin Verville Sr., 21, a U.S. Marine corporal, and his wife, Angelina, 22.
Kevin Jr. had come home to his family at Sterling Homes—a residential area near Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California—after a week-long hospital stay for jaundice.
The couple had recently relocated to the area after Verville Sr. spent a few years stationed in the Philippines.
On the afternoon of July 1, 1980, returning from a grocery trip, a woman introduced as “Sheila” approached the family, claiming to be a social worker from HELP, an organization providing assistance like stipends and baby supplies to low-income military families.
“The kidnapper appeared just as we were bringing groceries upstairs,” Verville Sr. recounted to the audience, “and we both agreed to register for this program.”
Kevin Verville Jr. was taken from his mother in broad daylight by a woman posing as a social worker 45 years ago.
As it stands, Kevin could be living anywhere, unaware of his true identity. The @NCMEC has shared a digitally aged image of how Kevin might look today. https://t.co/7fPGbYwQaE pic.twitter.com/uwf6IItEIp
— FBI San Diego (@FBISanDiego) June 10, 2025
Verville Sr. said the woman agreed to give Angelina and the baby a ride to her social services office, explaining that they would need to weigh Kevin for the program.
“Sometimes they pose as people who can help your family,” Hartmann told the audience. “She was basically offering diapers, milk, whatever you need for a newborn.”
Verville Sr., who agreed to stay hone and put away the groceries, said the woman appeared to be pregnant, and “said she had to pick up another lady signing up [for the program].”
The kidnapper, with Angelina and Kevin Jr. in the car, drove away with promises to take them to the social services’ office.
The woman then made a stop at a remote area near the base, and asked Angelina to knock on the door of the other person signing up for the program.
As Angelina got out of the car, “Sheila” drove away with the infant.
Stranded, Angelina began flailing her arms as she helplessly watched the vehicle flee.
A local truck driver spotted Angelina and took her to a nearby police station. Police then began questioning residents at the family’s apartment complex, and learned that the kidnapper had knocked on many doors before the incident, asking specific questions.
“She was looking or a baby who was half-white, half-Filipino, and male,” Hartmann said.
Angelina is Filipino descent, and Verville Sr. is white.
Witnesses then helped police create a sketch of “Sheila,” described as appearing to be around 20 years old, standing about 5 feet, 2 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds.
She also had a circle tattoo with a cross inside it, between her thumb and index finger on her left hand.
Since the incident, Angelina has suffered from several strokes and is unable to talk or walk. She also endured the disintegration of her marriage to Verville Sr., as the stress of the incident took its toll on the couple.
Angelina sat quietly in a wheelchair as her daughter, Angelica Ramsey, spoke on her behalf, and thanked the community for listening to their story.
“Welcome home,” an audience member said, welcoming them to the CrimeCon family.
Hartmann added that the kidnapper may have taken Kevin to raise as her own, possibly as a replacement baby she presented as her son.
Anyone with information is urged to contact NCMEC at 1-800-THE-LOST or the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI and tips.fbi.gov.
[Feature Photo via NCMEC]
