Greek Maria Was 'Gift' from Bulgarian Parents, DNA Test Underway

Three of Maria's presumed siblings - it was reported that the little baby is not a natural redhead, but the mother had dyed her hair with henna to chase away illnesses. Photo bTV

Bulgarian police have taken to the capital Sofia the alleged parents of the blond girl, found in a Roma camp in Greece, for further questioning and for DNA tests.

The family was driven away in a police car overnight with three of their children.

The child, known as Maria and aged about four, was found by Greek police during a drug raid on a Roma community near Larissa in central Greece.

A 40-year old woman and 39 -year-old man have been arrested and charged with kidnapping, since DNA tests revealed that the couple with whom Maria lived was not her biological parents.

Greek authorities then requested assistance from Interpol to find the parents of the girl.

A team of journalists from www.zougla.gr, the Greek News Portal of one of the best-known investigative journalists in Bulgaria's southern neighbor, Makis Triantafyllopoulos, revealed Thursday morning that the parents were Bulgarian Roma Sasha and Atanas Rusevi.

The Greek journalists published the ID cards of the family with the prosecution's permission. This led the authorities to the Roma quarters of the Bulgarian village of Nikolaevo in the central Stara Zagora region.

Before being taken away by police, the presumed biological mother, Sasha Ruseva, spoke to the crowd of journalists, who gathered in the village after the news made headlines.

She said she gave Maria as "gift" to an acquaintance in Greece, who was childless and offered to take care of the girl. At the time, the child was 7-months old and was named Stanka.

"I have not taken any money, I gave her because we are poor," the Roma woman is adamant.

The "adoptive" parents have assured her she could visit the child whenever she wanted, but after she returned to Bulgaria, Sasha became pregnant twice more and never again saw the baby.

"I would take her back now, though I have no money, said she.

Sasha and Atanas have between 7 and 10 children. However, they, themselves, are not sure of the exact number. Five of the children in the family have light skin and bear an obvious resemblance to the girl found in Greece.

The family is very poor and all live in one room.

bTV also reported that the "blond" gene of the five children was inherited from the mother Sasha who has albinos in her kin.

Greek psychologists established that Maria has been abused. They say she is very aggressive and describe her reactions as those of "a beast."

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