Family's fury as US 'scammer' will arrive in Britain next week in bid to 'prove' she is toddler who vanished 45 years ago

By MATTHEW YOUNG and NOOR QURASHI, NEWS REPORTER Published: 18:22, 28 May 2026 | Updated: 18:22, 28 May 2026 An American woman who claims to be missing British toddler Katrice Lee will arrive in the UK next week to 'prove' her identity. Heather McCord is due to land at London Gatwick Airport on Thursday - and says she plans to take a DNA test. Katrice vanished on her second birthday from an armed forces supermarket in Paderborn, West Germany, in 1981. Her family has denounced McCord as a hoaxer who wants to gain attention and money out of their tragedy. McCord, from New York, previously started a GoFundMe page to raise money for travel to the UK before it was closed down following complaints by Katrice's loved ones. Katrice's sister Natasha Walker and her father Richard, 76, who was based in West Germany as a Sergeant Major in the Army, believe McCord is the latest in a string of scammers trying to involve themselves in the case. Ms Walker, 51, told the Daily Mail: 'It's deeply disturbing that someone thinks this is perfectly normal behaviour. I am obviously concerned for my family as nobody really knows what she is capable of. It's dangerous and it puts my family at risk. This behaviour is just not OK.' McCord said she will stay at a hotel near Gatwick, just a 90–minute drive from where Ms Walker and her mother, Sharon, live in Gosport, Hampshire. Katrice (pictured) vanished on her second birthday from an armed forces supermarket in Paderborn, West Germany , in 1981 Heather McCord (pictured), from New York, previously started a GoFundMe page to raise money for travel to the UK before it was closed down following complaints by Katrice's loved ones Richard Lee holds a picture of his daughter Katrice. The toddler had been with her mother, Sharon, and her aunt Wendy in a NAAFI supermarket, shopping for snacks for her birthday party Ms Walker says a member of The Search for Katrice Lee Facebook page, who has now been blocked from the group, had been feeding information to McCord and may have given her their addresses. She has reported her concerns to the Royal Military Police, the investigating force in Katrice's case. McCord claims she was abducted as a child and says she has been blocked from getting DNA tests in the United States by authorities. She admitted to the Mail that she has nothing set up for her arrival in England but claims she has no further options for finding out her true identity. McCord claims to have a condition known as 'exophoria', where one eye drifts outwards, which she says confirms she is Katrice. Katrice suffered from strabismus, a related eye condition which was severe enough that it would have needed two operations to correct. McCord also claims she has a similar birthmark to Katrice's on her lower back, resembling a rash. Her GoFundMe page appeared to have raised $217 before being taken down from multiple platforms. McCord claims to have a condition known as 'exophoria', where one eye drifts outwards, which she says confirms she is Katrice McCord has claimed all of it had been spent on a flight to the UK. She says she booked the tickets in January and that she 'just wants to know who she is'. It is not the first time Katrice's family have been 'blighted' by people claiming to be the missing girl. Ms Walker says the current claims remind her of when the family was tormented by Donna Wright, from County Durham. Wright repeatedly harassed them with phone calls in 2014 while on a suspended sentence for the same offence. Another woman, named Heidi Robinson, pleaded guilty to a malicious communications offence in 2019 and was sentenced to 18 weeks in prison, suspended for two years, with a mental health treatment order. The Royal Military Police has previously admitted to failures in its initial investigation into Katrice's disappearance. She had been with her mother, Sharon, and her aunt Wendy in a NAAFI supermarket, shopping for snacks for her birthday party. At the checkout, Sharon realised she had forgotten to buy crisps for the event and so nipped back down the aisle to grab them while Katrice stayed with Wendy. Within a second, Katrice turned to run after her mum, and it was assumed by Wendy that she had caught up with her. The toddler was never seen again. The Royal Military Police failed to question checkout workers for six weeks and no national borders were closed, leaving the family with a 45–year mystery which continues to this day. No comments have so far been submitted. 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