kalerkantho

The first person recognised by a Spanish court as one of the country's "stolen babies", who were snatched from their mothers during the Franco dictatorship, has found her biological family following a DNA test.

But Inés Madrigal also found that she wasn't stolen after all, but adopted.

A court had last year ruled that an elderly doctor stole her as a baby.

Thanks to a DNA database in the US, Ms Madrigal discovered a cousin, who put her in touch with biological siblings.

Ms Madrigal, 50, was a test case for the many infants taken illegally from their mothers. The mothers were told their children had died, but the children were given to other families to adopt, often with the help of the Catholic Church.

The practice began under Gen Francisco Franco and went on for up to 50 years, until the 1990s. No-one knows how many babies were stolen but victims' groups estimate that the number taken from their mothers could be as high as 300,000.

Ms Madrigal's revelation that her mother willingly gave her up for adoption has now prompted prosecutors to reconsider the case.