One-year-old Sofia was abducted by her father and trafficked out of her home in Brazil. We helped bring her home, but there are thousands more missing children waiting to be found and freed.
You can help find and reunite missing children like Sofia.
One-year-old Sofia was abducted by her father and trafficked out of her home in Brazil. We helped bring her home, but there are thousands more missing children waiting to be found and freed.
FUEL FREEDOM FOR MISSING CHILDREN
18,000 kids like Sofia are reported missing every year in Brazil. You can help bring them home.
The dense rainforests of the Darién Gap are no place for a child to be alone. But that is precisely where one-year-old Sofia, abducted by her father on his journey out of Brazil, was discovered by another group of travelers.
Each year, hundreds of thousands of migrants from South American countries embark on perilous journeys, often traveling northward through the Darién Gap – a mountainous region spanning the border of Colombia and Panama.
They are driven to leave their homes because of extreme economic hardship, violence, or deep political unrest in their countries.
Sofia was abducted by her estranged father, who trafficked her from her home in Brazil as he began his journey northward.
No one heard from him after he reached the jungle where one-year-old Sofia was found abandoned. Officials suspect that the father died on the trip.
Vulnerable Sofia – separated from her mother, Veronica, for months – was placed in a Panamanian shelter as officials began the complicated process of determining where she was from, how she ended up in Panama, and most importantly, who might be looking for her.
Photo from within the Darién Gap. Officials estimate that more than 560,000 migrants, some victims of human trafficking, will pass through the dense forest in 2024. Credit: Federico Rios for The New York Times
Veronica sits alone in her home in Brazil. For more than 6-months she held desperate hope that she would be reconciled with her daugher, Sofia, after she was abducted by her estranged father. Credit: Folha De S. Paulo
That is where The Exodus Road stepped in to help.
At the request of the Brazilian agency that handles international legal issues, The Exodus Road was asked to reunite Sofia with Veronica back home in Brazil. We were eager to assist, and in May of 2024, our team waited with the expectant mother outside security at the airport in São Paulo.
Finally, the moment came when a lawyer walked off the jet bridge and through airport doors, carrying Sofia. Veronica wrapped her daughter in her arms. Sofia was finally home.
With 60 children disappearing in Brazil every day, the need is still great.
We need you to continue this work with us. Your gift today can fund the work of The Exodus Road in Brazil as we support:
Reunification for survivors like Sofia
When our partners ask for The Exodus Road to help bring trafficked children home, you can help us respond.
Training for law enforcement in Brazil
We’ve already trained thousands of police to identify, investigate, and free victims of exploitation, but many more need to be reached.
More than 18,000 children like Sofia are reported missing each year in Brazil. Every story is different.
In Sofia’s situation, she suffered forced abduction and smuggling. But Sofia’s case isn’t the first time that The Exodus Road has helped reunite missing children with their families. We have walked alongside children experiencing sex trafficking, forced labor, and coercion. Thousands of miles from home, they are hoping that someone will find and bring them home.
We believe that no one, especially no child, should be bought, sold, or exploited. In Brazil, we are training law enforcement to find trafficked men, women, and children, investigate their cases, and mobilize to free them. And it is working.
In fact, we’ve already empowered police to free 394 survivors and arrest 40 perpetrators.
We know that when law enforcement is trained, trafficking is disrupted, and freedom is made possible.
Hope is restored. Families are reunited. Traffickers are brought to justice.
No child should have to endure the trauma of being trafficked, alone, and vulnerable.
No parent should experience the heart-wrenching fear of their child going missing. Together, we can stop this from happening.
Donate now to make a tangible difference in the lives of those who need it most. You can ensure that more children like Sofia are brought home safely, that more traffickers are brought to justice, and that more families are reunited.
No child should have to endure the trauma of being trafficked, alone, and vulnerable.
No parent should experience the heart-wrenching fear of their child going missing. Together, we can stop this from happening.
Donate now to make a tangible difference in the lives of those who need it most. You can ensure that more children like Sofia are brought home safely, that more traffickers are brought to justice, and that more families are reunited.