Missing Autistic Boy Found Safe
LOS ANGELES (AP) — An autistic 9-year-old who ran away from his Los Angeles home is safe after staying overnight with a man police at first feared might have kidnapped him.
Police say the boy got into an argument with his mother Friday night and went to a gas station. He was seen getting into a car and vanished for about 12 hours.
Sgt. Paul Lawson tells City News Service that the driver who picked up the boy took him to the motorist's home. The driver was stopped by police the next morning as he drove the boy around trying to find where he lived.
Lawson says police considered arresting the man for kidnapping at one point, but determined he was a Good Samaritan and hadn't intended to harm the boy. However, child welfare workers are trying to determine why the boy ran away.
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