Child Missing for Three Days Says Bear Kept Him Company

While police and his parents may never really know what 3-year-old Casey Hathaway did to survive for three days in the wilderness, the little boy is offering one farfetched explanation.

“He made a comment about having a friend while he was in the woods — his friend was a bear,” Maj. David McFadyen with the Craven County Sheriff’s Office told CNN Monday. “In the emergency room he started talking about what happened in the woods and he said he had a friend that was a bear with him while he was in the woods.”

Missing 3-year-old boy Casey Lynn Hathaway has been found alive in North Carolina, an FBI spokeswoman says https://t.co/Dsvv3eU8i3

— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) January 25, 2019

While the officer admitted that there are bears in the North Carolina area’s surrounding woods, he said there’s no way of knowing if Casey actually encountered one while he was out in the forest alone.

All that matters, McFadyen said, is that something brought him comfort during those the three days.

“There were very brutal conditions out there,” he said, according to CNN. “The first night it dropped down to 20 degrees, the second night we had 2 inches of rain.”

“He has not been interviewed yet about what happened, he’s a 3-year-old little boy,” McFadyen added. “Until we do the forensic exam we won’t have a definite idea yet.”

Casey was eventually found after a number of tips and leads were followed up by a search and rescue team that included the FBI, NCIS, dozens of civilian volunteers, the US Marine Corps, officer-piloted helicopters, drones and K-9 units.

On day three, they were able to hear the 3-year-old calling out for his mother from beneath a “mess of vines and thorns,” Craven County Sheriff Chip Hughes said.