Man, 19, admits FALLING IN LOVE with his long-lost mum after tracking her down on Facebook
Shane Burke "developed romantic feelings" for his birth mother, Rose Bestall
A 19-YEAR-OLD man has confessed to being sexually attracted to his long-lost mum.
Shane Burke, who lives in Manchester, used Facebook to track down his birth mother Rose Bestall, 35, after being apart for 13 years – and he ended up falling in love with her.
After an emotional reunion, Shane became “confused” about his feelings towards Rose and “developed romantic feelings”.
Rose, who gave Shane up for adoption when he was five, revealed the declaration of love left her with a “massive dilemma”.
She told the : “I knew Shane's feelings were completely inappropriate but I had searched for him for so long and I didn't want to push him away again.
“I told him I loved him unconditionally as his mum but our relationship could never be anything else.”
Rose, from Ashford, Surrey, became pregnant with Shane by accident aged just 15, with then boyfriend John Smith, who was also 15.
Social services took Shane into foster care because she was “too young” to look after him, and he was later adopted by a couple in Manchester.
Rose, who has four other children and is married to Darryl, 33, eventually took a custody battle to the High Court, but a judge held that Shane was already settled with his adoptive parents.
Shane felt “incomplete” during his life and always wondered about his birth parents.
He was given his parents' names by his adoptive mum and dad, but was blocked from contacting Rose via Facebook due to her privacy settings.
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In October, Shane sent a picture of himself to her son Nicholas, which she instantly recognised due to his resemblance to his dad.
After chatting online, they had a tear-jerking reunion before Shane came to stay with her for a few weeks.
The pair bonded in the pub over their “shared love of karaoke” but their relationship was placed in jeopardy when Shane admitted his romantic feelings.
Rose told her son the relationship “could never be romantic” but that she would not “push him away”.
Shane told the : “Now I love Rose because she is my mum, nothing more. I call her Rose as we're all still adjusting but maybe in time I'll call her mum.”
He believes he had genetic sexual attraction, a condition where sexual attraction arises between relatives after they meet as adults.
What is Genetic Sexual Attraction?
Genetic Sexual Attraction (GSA) is when sexual feelings develop between two family members who first meet as adults.
It can happen to parents and children, siblings and half-siblings, usually when one has been abandoned, adopted or raised apart due to divorce or separation.
In the UK, sex with a parent, child, sibling, nephew, niece, uncle or aunt is defined as incest and is illegal under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
People who commit such crimes can face a maximum two-year penalty.
The term GSA was coined in America in the 1980s by Barbara Gonyo, who founded a support group after her experience with the son she met 26 years after adoption.