A 12-year-old boy missing for more than two days has been reunited with his “ecstatic” family after he was found hiding in a stairwell of a doctor’s clinic less than 100 metres from the police station where he was first reported missing.
For three days, hundreds of volunteers, community members and emergency services searched the Auburn area for Hussein Al Mansoory, who spent more than two days alone in the area after running away from his parents at a local park on Saturday morning.
12-year-old Hussein Al Mansoory has been missing since Saturday morning.Credit: Police media
Police held serious concerns for Hussein, who has Down syndrome and autism, and is non-verbal.
Taking the advice of police and NSW State Emergency Service members to check backyards, sheds and garages, a staff member at a local medical centre, nestled between Auburn’s police station and train station, checked the stairwell just before 1pm.
They found Hussein and immediately contacted police, who arrived to find him smiling and sitting up.
Superintendent Simon Glasser said Hussein’s family were immediately notified.
“They rushed to the scene and took him in their arms,” he said. “They’re quite ecstatic.”
He was taken to hospital for a precautionary check-up but “by all accounts, he’s well”, Glasser said.
Police do not know how long Hussein spent in the stairwell, or whether he found water. It would be difficult to establish his movements since Saturday because he is non-verbal, Glasser said.