NEED TO KNOW
- A 12-year-old boy was found alive in an Ohio park three days after he went missing, officials tell PEOPLE
- The child was in “good shape” and taken home to his family
- It’s unclear why he didn’t return to his house
A 12-year-old boy from Ohio has been found safe three days after he went missing, authorities said.
On the afternoon of Friday, July 4, Cameron Jones was discovered in Crawford Woods Park in Hamilton — the same location he was reported missing — Chief John Adams of the Ohio LandSAR Search and Rescue confirms to PEOPLE.
The child was in a dense area of the woods when Adams’ team came across him, he says.
“He just jumped out,” adds Adams. “We kind of spooked him, I guess.”
The boy was in “good shape” and was immediately transported to his parents’ home by the local sheriff’s department.
The Butler County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The boy has been missing since Tuesday, July 1, at 10 a.m. local time, when he left his home, officials said. At the time, he told his mom that he was heading to Crawford Woods Park, a 54-acre public park behind his house, FOX affiliate WXIX reported.
But Jones didn’t go back. Concerned, the family submitted a missing persons report and the Butler County Sheriff’s Office began investigating the disappearance, according to the outlet.
By the evening of Wednesday, July 2, Jones’ family reached out to Ohio LandSAR, Adams tells PEOPLE. The search and rescue team consists entirely of volunteers and is based in Mount Carmel.
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Adams’ team was in the park the next day and searched for the missing teen until 9 or 10 p.m. that evening. The search began again at 8:30 a.m. on the Fourth of July, and Jones was found hours later.
It’s unclear what caused Jones to not return home. Adams says the boy didn’t say much to the rescue team when they found him. He does not have further information about the reason behind Jones’ disappearance.
“That’s something that the parents and the police will have to get involved with,” says Adams. “We just got out there and we just try to find him. That’s all we do.”
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