Police bodycam reveals moment mother learns missing autistic son had been found alive two years later

‘My sweetheart’s alive,’ the mother says through her tears

Nearly three years after he suddenly vanished from his Californian home, teenager Connerjack Oswalt has been found sleeping in a convenience store in Utah.

The 19-year-old who has been diagnosed with autism and other mental health conditions, was shivering due to the cold when he was found in Summit County, famous for its ski destinations, on 9 April, county officials said.

“Connerjack, who is autistic, was reported missing in California in September of 2019. Deputies were able to reunite Connerjack with his family, who was losing hope. Please watch this heartwarming and emotional story,” the sheriff wrote in a post on Facebook.

The teenager’s stepfather travelled to the county to confirm it was Connerjack and let his mother know that he was alive. The emotional moment was caught on the body cam of one of the officers present in the room at the time, according to a report.

“Is it him?” the mother’s voice can be heard asking through the phone’s speaker.

“A little bit older, but yeah,” the stepfather said.

“My sweetheart’s alive,” the mother replied, her voice breaking through her tears: “Oh my God.”

Mr Oswalt was living on the streets in the area for a couple of weeks, officials said.

“Over the past couple weeks, many in our community called us about a homeless person wandering around the Kimball Junction area, pushing a shopping cart,” the Facebook post read.

It added that the deputies responded to the alerts every time and even “offered services to the young man, who was NOT violating any laws”. However, the teenager refused the help.

On Saturday, they decided to offer help to the teenager again and he agreed.

“They got him in their warm patrol vehicle and began digging to find out who the man was. Through past interactions and the Saturday interaction, it was clear to deputies that the man communicated differently,” the officials said, adding that they started investigating about the teenager shortly after.

This initiative has ended the family’s over two-year struggle to find their son.

The missing person flyer for Connerjack Oswalt (Screengrab: YouTube/ ABC7)

His stepfather Gerald Flint said: “Any hints at something that remotely resembled him, we would follow up on it. It’s been a real nightmare.”

They handed out fliers, scanned social media and traced down futile leads since 2019 and even moved to the teenager’s birth town Idaho Falls in a bid to be available there in case he eventually makes it back.

On the day he went missing, his mother remembers making quesadillas but he was gone that afternoon at the time of lunch.

“I never stopped looking for him. There wasn’t a day I wasn’t searching for him, in some form or fashion,” his mother Suzanne Flint said.

Connerjack Oswalt’s parents Suzanne and Gerald Flint react to finding him safe (Fox 13 )

Police said they are looking into the exact circumstances of his disappearance and whereabouts over the last years.

With the help of an outstanding warrant and Mr Oswalt’s fingerprint, the officials were able to find some lead.

Sheriff Justin Martinez said: “The deputies just felt that there was something there, something beyond a criminal warrant. There was a humanitarian effort that needed to be explored further.”

Sifting through piles of reports on missing and endangered children, the officials found his missing report from 2019 from California’s Clearlake. After the photos matched, the officials rang up the family.

On receiving the call, the Flints thought their son had been found dead.

But after Mr Oswalt’s identity was confirmed, Mr Flint left work and dashed to Utah.

“Everyone in the room was in tears. They went above and beyond, put hours of work,” Mr Flint said. “They could have dismissed it, but they didn’t and that made all the difference in the world.”