Woman Reported Missing 31 Years Ago Found in Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico—A Pennsylvania woman who went missing more than 30 years ago in a case that stumped authorities who later declared her legally dead has been found living in a nursing home in Puerto Rico.

Patricia Kopta, who left behind her husband and children, wandered through northern Puerto Rico before being taken into custody. “in need” According to Ross Township’s news conference, she was transferred to an adult care home in 1999.

Kopta was once a street preacher in her hometown. She kept her past secrets while she was in Puerto Rico. Ross Township Chief Brian Kohlhepp explained that she started to disclose details about her past as she was suffering from dementia.

A social worker at the home had enough information by last year to notify authorities back home about the now-83 years-old woman. Kohlhepp stated that a DNA test confirmed her identity.

Bob Kopta, her husband, and Gloria Smith (her surviving sister), shared the news. Kopta spoke at Friday’s news conference as well as in telephone interviews with The Associated Press.

Patricia Kopta was nicknamed “The Sparrow” Due to her petite build, she frequented the parking lots and busy roads of the largely residential community north of Pittsburgh where she would warn passersby as well as motorists about the end.

Kopta was an A-student who went on to become a model and a dance instructor before she started preaching. Her family says that she attended ballroom dancing events every week after graduating from high school.

Smith said that Smith was able to recall her vacationing in Puerto Rico with friends before she got married.

“She just loved the ocean, the beach, the warm sunshine,” Smith spoke to the AP.

Smith stated that her sister, who had been working at the glass company for 10 years, quit because she was suffering from migraines. Doctors blame stress. The Art Institute of Pittsburgh then offered her an elevator operator job.

Family members saw a shift in her behavior.

“She said something about seeing an angel there,” Smith was recalled.

Kopta started preaching shortly afterward and was briefly institutionalized when doctors diagnosed her as having a condition called “Kopta Syndrome”. “delusions of grandeur” She claimed she was suffering from schizophrenia. After her release, she continued preaching until she disappeared in 1992.

“I come home one night, and she’s just gone,” Bob Kopta said this to the AP.

They were married for twenty years.

Kopta, now aged 86, recalls how they met by a river in Pittsburgh. He had a boat. He offered to take her and her friends on a ride, and they fell in love. They were married in 1972.

Authorities and relatives were puzzled by the disappearance. Kopta recalls that his wife once said she wanted to go to Puerto Rico for its sunny weather. He published ads in Puerto Rican papers, but did not receive a reply.

Her disappearance was not reported for many years. Seven years later, he obtained a death certificate.

“I went through a lot,” Bob Kopta is a retired truck driver. “Every time they’d find a body somewhere (I wondered), ‘Is it Patricia? Is it Patricia?'”

Patricia Kopta was seen wandering through the northern towns Naranjito Corozal and Toa Alta just southwest from San Juan. Kohlhepp explained that she had suggested to Kohlhepp that she had arrived in Puerto Rico from Europe when she was first taken in to the adult home.

After a social worker called police in Pennsylvania, it took almost one year for DNA samples that confirmed Patricia Kopta was the woman.

“It’s a sad thing, but it’s a relief off my mind,” She said it to her husband. “When your wife goes missing, you’re a suspect.”

Bob Kopta said he did not remarry and said he doesn’t have plans to visit. He also stated that he is trying to forget his past but is glad to know that she is well taken care of.

Smith wants to visit her older sister on the island. Because of her dementia, Smith says she is unable to talk to her older sibling via phone. Patricia Kopta’s twin sister died without her knowing that her twin was still living.

“Whether she knows me or not, I still want to see her and give her a hug and tell her I love her,” Smith stated. “I thought maybe she had died.”

By Dánica Coto