Eugenea Collins claims she is the missing British girl
An American woman is making bold claims that she is actually Madeleine McCann, the British toddler who disappeared nearly two decades ago— and she says she has DNA ‘proof’ to back it up.
Madeleine’s 2007 disappearance from a Portuguese resort at the age of three sparked global headlines and remains one of the biggest mysteries in modern history.
Now, 22-year-old Eugenea Collins from Arkansas insists she is the missing girl, flooding social media with posts declaring herself to be the real Maddy. She has even gone as far as claiming she possesses DNA evidence to prove it.
Collins, who has blonde hair and blue eyes, was born on October 23, 2002—a date that aligns closely with Madeleine’s age, though the British girl’s official birthdate is May 12, 2003.
Despite skepticism, Collins remains adamant that she is Madeleine McCann. Speaking to the Daily Mail, she revealed that her suspicions about her identity first arose after watching Julia Wandelt—a Polish woman who previously claimed to be Madeleine—on Dr. Phil.
Wandelt’s story was debunked when a DNA test confirmed she was not related to Kate and Gerry McCann. She has since been charged with stalking the McCann family in the UK, allegedly bombarding them with messages, sending letters, and even showing up at their home, according to the BBC.
Collins believes Wandelt’s case inadvertently led her to the truth. “If it wasn’t for me seeing her on Dr. Phil, I would’ve never known,” she said. “In a way, her stupidity actually helped me find my family.”
She claims she recognized herself in age-progression images of Madeleine, saying, “It was like looking in a mirror. I just know I saw pictures of myself online, and it says I’m missing.”
Taking her claims to TikTok, Collins has been documenting her alleged resemblance to Madeleine and even shared her ancestry DNA results, which show she is 68% English and Northwestern European—a fact she insists is “proof” of her identity.
Collins further fuels her claims by stating that she has been unable to obtain formal identification and has never seen her original birth certificate. “The only thing I saw had someone else’s name written on it,” she explained. “They marked that out and wrote mine above it.”
Her social media activity reveals a complicated family history, with Collins alleging she has no relationship with her supposed biological father—a man she claims bears a striking resemblance to Christian B., the German convicted pedophile who was once the prime suspect in Madeleine McCann’s disappearance.
Although Christian B. was later acquitted due to lack of evidence, Collins believes there is a connection. She recalls meeting her alleged father only three times, saying: “I was always told he was a little off in the head. We were never allowed to go around him. I never knew why.”
Collins remains steadfast in her claims, insisting that the infamous German suspect Christian B. is the man she was always told was her biological father. “When I first saw the photos of Christian B., I instantly recognized that man,” she declared. “Christian B. is the man I was told my whole life was my father.”
However, skeptics have been quick to highlight key differences between Collins and Madeleine—such as the distinctive mark in Madeleine’s eye and their differently shaped ears.
Collins, however, is undeterred. She claims to have recently discovered ‘scars’ behind her ears, which she believes could explain any discrepancies.
On social media, she has described a lifelong sense of emptiness, writing: “I felt like something was missing from my life, and I just couldn’t quite put my finger on it. The feeling of not belonging wasn’t just in my head—it was because I actually didn’t belong here.”
Now that she has ‘figured it out,’ she says it feels like “a weight has been lifted off [her] chest.”
With unwavering confidence, she reiterates: “This isn’t just another false alarm. I really am Madeleine McCann.”
