Lost Boy With Autism Returned Safely To Parents

SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — Suffolk County deputy sheriffs helped bring a lost little boy with autism home safely.

According to Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon, on Thursday, deputy sheriff and investigator Lt. Michael Smith was traveling eastbound on Sunrise Highway in Brookhaven when he saw a young boy on the side of the road wearing nothing but a T-shirt. He stopped and attempted to speak with the boy, but the boy would not respond to verbal questions, Toulon said.

With the help of two good Samaritans, Smith was able to get the boy wrapped in a diaper and a blanket and put him safely in his sheriff’s office vehicle, Toulon said.

With the help of other Suffolk County Sheriff deputies and members of the Suffolk County Police Department, the neighborhood was canvassed to find the boy’s family; after a brief search, his home was located and his mother confirmed that the boy was autistic and sometimes leaves the house, Toulon said.

Deputies told the boy’s mother that the Sheriff’s Office is the coordinator of Project Lifesaver, a rapid-response program that helps those who wander as a result of cognitive impairments or other afflictions; the program helps their families, too, Toulon said. The program combines technology and specially trained sheriff’s deputies to locate those who have wandered; Project Lifesaver clients wear a “watch-type” wristband transmitter which emits a tracking signal, Toulon aid.

For more information on Project Lifesaver, or any of the Sheriff’s Office programs, click here.