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Sacramento family reunited with missing brother after 30 years

"I could tell even after 30 years. That was my brother."

A Sacramento area family finally found answers about a missing loved one through a "Missing in California" event held in June.

The event was held for the first time at Sacramento State. It was a collaborative effort with law enforcement agencies across California hoping to reunite families with missing loved ones.

Sandra McMahon went to the event hoping to find out what happened to her brother 30 years ago.

"My sister and I tried to track him down for years, but we're unsuccessful," McMahon said.

McMahon talked to law enforcement agencies at the event and gave them details on her brother. In about a week she got a call from Paige Kneeland from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department:

They found her brother!

"It took about a week for them to find him and I think the issue was the social security number," McMahon said. "For years we tried to find him, but I think it was a case of stolen identity and we had an incorrect social security number."

Her brother, Bobby, was found living in Wyoming and working as an executive chef.

"We were able to do some public searches and also some database searches, that law enforcement has access to, and we were able to locate him," Kneeland said.

"I saw it was probably him, a phone number from Wyoming. And not knowing what to expect, I answered the phone and I knew it was him right away," McMahon said. "I could tell even after 30 years. That was my brother."

McMahon's father passed away in 2008 and never knew what happened to Bobby. However, their mother, who is now 90, is able to get some closure.

"I love him unconditionally," McMahon said. "He's family and that hasn't changed."

"That was a very fulfilling moment, to be able to make one connection. So we're hoping for more," Kneeland said.

McMahon said her brother will be making a trip to California to officially reunite in person in September and find out more to what happened in those 30 years. The brother wouldn't answer when she asked why he left.

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department said they now have eight brand new cases because of the event and some of them go as far back as 1954.

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