Man Missing For 26 Years Found Living In Neighbour's House, Just A Few Metres Away

An Algerian family was in for the shock of their lives when they learned that one of their own, who had been missing for well over two decades, had been living just a few minutes away from them all these years. An Algerian man who went missing in 1998 has been found, being held captive by a neighbor for 26 years.?

Kidnapped at the age of 19

The man identified as Omar B had gone missing when he was just 19 years old in 1998 during the Algerian Civil War. His family assumed he had been kidnapped or killed, and Omar was almost forgotten when he reappeared recently.?

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What is even more shocking is that Omar, who is now a 45-year-old,?was?living close to them all these years. The Algerian justice ministry said Tuesday that Omar, who had been missing for 26 years, was being held captive in his neighbor's house, just a few minutes' walk away.?

Also read:?Youth Stages Own Kidnapping To Avoid Going To Leh

The alleged culprit, a 61-year-old doorman at the municipality in the nearby town of El Guedid, was taken into custody after attempting to flee, the ministry said.?

How he was found

The twists in this absurd tale don't even end there.?The illegal captivity came to light after a fallout between the captor and his brother over an inheritance dispute. The captor's brother aired his grievances on social media, leading to the recovery of Omar, who was found amid haystacks only about 200 meters away from his house.

Also read:?Man Gets Stuck Inside Rogue Electric Car, Claims He Was 'Kidnapped'

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Captors cast a spell on him

It is unclear how the captors managed to keep Omar silent and unnoticed for all these years, but Algerian media reported that the victim said he had been unable to call out for help "because of a spell that his captor had cast on him".

Authorities said that the victim was receiving medical and psychological care after the years of trauma he had to go through.

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