Overview
- The child was last seen leaving a Park Drive graduation gathering and is believed to have wandered off around 4:10 p.m. Sunday, prompting an intensive search by local and state teams.
- Police describe the boy as autistic, nonverbal, about 3-foot-7 and 48 pounds, last seen shoeless in a light-colored shirt and dark pants, and say he is drawn to water and needs medication.
- Menands police have enlisted the New York State Police, the Albany County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI’s Albany office while volunteers and neighbors search yards, woods and outbuildings.
- Search teams have used tactics such as playing the boy’s favorite song, stationing ice cream trucks to lure him, and asking residents to check private cameras and climbable structures; anyone who finds him should call 911 and speak softly.
- The boy’s uncle, Hamtramck Mayor Adam Alharbi, flew to New York to join the family, who are offering a $10,000 reward, and authorities say they currently do not believe another person was involved while they continue to investigate all possibilities.