A 12-year-old Detroit boy who had been missing since Father's Day was discovered alive in the basement of his home just hours after authorities were considering the possibility that his disappearance was a homicide.
The Associated Press reports that police found Charlie Bothuell V in the basement of the home where he lives with his father, Charles Bothuell, and stepmother. The Associated Press adds that police were there to serve a search warrant.
The boy was found behind "boxes and a large plastic drum," and though he was hungry, authorities said he appeared to be fine. He was taken in for medical evaluation as a safety precaution.
His father learned that not only was his son alive, but that he had been in found in the basement of his home live on Nancy Grace last night.
Though Grace was clearly skeptical of Bothuell's ignorance of the situation, the Associated Press notes that he took a polygraph while the boy was missing. His stepmother, however, declined to do so, and police say it's unclear if he was in the basement for the duration of his absence.
Bothuell told Grace that he, his wife, the police, and the FBI had searched the basement several times prior to the boy's discovery. This was confirmed by Detroit Police Chief James Craig, and an investigation into this bizarre scenario is ongoing.
[via Associated Press and Gawker]
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