An eight-year-old boy missing from home in Germany for over a week has been found in a sewer.
The boy, who has been named only as Joe, went missing from his family garden in Oldenburg on June 17, sparking a large police search. He was finally discovered when a passer-by heard a noise coming from a manhole cover.
Firefighters pulled the boy from the sewer around 300 metres from his home and he was taken to hospital suffering from hypothermia, but had no major injuries. Police have ruled out foul play, stating that the boy crawled into the sewer on the day he went missing.
"Thanks to a tip from the public, we were able to find Joe in a sewer system," police chief Johann Kühme said. "The most important thing is that he is alive and was immediately taken to a hospital where he is in good hands. We can all breathe a sigh of relief." His father told local media Joe was "doing well" given the circumstances.
There had been speculation as to how the boy ended up in the sewer, but police said that he had crawled inside and then "lost his bearings".
