Argentina’s human-rights group Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo said on 7 July it has restored the identity of its 140th ‘stolen grandchild’, almost five decades after the baby was taken from political prisoners during the 1976-83 military dictatorship. The announcement was made at the organisation’s Casa por la Identidad, located in the former ESMA clandestine detention centre in Buenos Aires. DNA tests confirmed that the 48-year-old man, born on 17 April 1977 in the Bahía Blanca detention facility known as La Escuelita, is the son of left-wing activists Graciela Alicia Romero and Raúl Eugenio Metz, who were abducted in Neuquén in December 1976 and have been missing ever since. His sister, Adriana Metz, who works with Abuelas, helped track him down after an anonymous tip and held an emotional first video call with her brother. Abuelas estimates that roughly 500 infants were abducted during the dictatorship and says more than 300 remain to be found. Grandchild 140 is the second identity restitution this year, following the discovery of grandchild 139 in January, and underscores the continued importance of the National Genetic Data Bank, which the group warns is under financial pressure from President Javier Milei’s austerity measures. "Thanks to 47 years of perseverance, our grandchildren keep appearing," said Abuelas president Estela de Carlotto, pledging to press on with the search.