Monday 9 May 2022 07:41 AM Australian toddler found outside church in Mexico headed home as search ... trends now

An Australian toddler who was found wandering barefoot and alone outside a church in Mexico is on her way back home.

Adelynn, 2, was found on the steps of a chapel in Cancun on Sunday evening before was reunited with her grandmother Leanne and uncle Ben Shanks who flew in from Australia.

The trio were spotted at the international airport on Monday as they prepared to catch a plane back to their home in Queensland.

The desperate search continues for the two-year-old's mother Tahnee Shanks, 32, who was reported missing with the child's father Jorge Aguirre Astudillo. 

Leanne told reporters outside the departure terminal it was 'breaking my heart' leaving the country without her daughter.

'I just can't even grasp what's happening,' she told Nine News. 'At the moment we can't even even get our heads around it.' 

Adelynn was seen being cradled in the arms of her uncle while her grandmother fitted a sandal onto her left foot at an airport cafe. 

'We're leaving knowing that Tahnee is getting searched for in a very professional way,' Ben said. 

Adelyn had previously been cared for by Mexican child welfare authorities before her relatives arrived. She has also now received an emergency Australian passport.

Ms Shanks' brother Daniel said 'three eyewitnesses' saw Mr Astudillo leave his daughter Adelynn outside the Chapel of the San Archangel. 

Mr Shanks told the ABC that his sister, who is from Queensland's Whitsundays, claimed she was on a vacation with her family in a small fishing village with poor reception but something felt off. 

'I'm assuming I was talking to him (Astudillo),' he said. 

Ms Shanks had been holidaying around the Yucatan peninsula and was set to return to Australia after her relationship broke down with her partner Mr Astudillo.

The distraught sibling said Ms Shanks had stopped using social media days before she went missing. 

Mr Shanks is unable to travel to Mexico himself because he is unvaccinated. 

'Look, it is very out of character, she is always on social media, she is always posting photos of her and Addie constantly, it is a constant stream of it, so for her to drop off, we knew something was wrong,' Mr Shanks told Sunrise on Friday.

'For this to happen is just tragic and heartbreaking. I haven't slept for three days, you can probably tell and I am just exhausted.' 

His comments came as further details emerged about how the two-year-old was found. 

An urgent message posted to Facebook alerted the local community in the state of Yucatán that the girl had bizarrely been found. 

Mr Shanks said his niece was 'dumped' at a church in the Mexican tourist town late at night and was found wandering the streets. 

As for his sister, she sent photos of the beaches they were visiting but 'next minute nothing from her'. 

He has offered a $5,000 reward for his sister's safe return and has spent the last few days dealing with Mexican and Australian authorities

The last known photos of Ms Shanks and Mr Astudillo show them in Las Coloradas, Yucatán, 93 miles from where their daughter was found in Cancún on Mexico's tropical southern tip.