By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-08-07 18:35:44 | Updated at 2026-08-07 20:00:12
1 hour ago
A nine-year-old boy with autism who had vanished from his Colorado home into the vast woods was stunningly spotted by a drone before being rescued.
The Arvada Police Department said the drone began operating only minutes after the nonverbal child's family reported him missing in the 8500 block of West 59th Avenue, according to KDVR.
According to law enforcement, the child was able to get out of a tightly secured backyard around 7.45pm on July 31.
That sparked the search effort for the missing boy, which included thermal imaging.
Arvada Police Officer David Snelling lauded the effort, saying the boy had been seen coming out of the trees on the south side of Ralston Creek.
'Someplace that wouldn't have been seen from the officers just patrolling on the street, and they hadn't gotten there and started walking the area just yet,' Snelling added.
Drone footage showed how the barefooted child ran over a small bridge toward a police officer and high-fived him after being found.
The area he was found in was surrounded by towering trees, a creek with moving water and tall grass.
The nine-year-old nonverbal boy with autism was reported missing in the 8500 block of West 59th Avenue at about 7.45pm on July 31, according to the Arvada Police Department
Arvada police said he was later found coming out of the trees on the south side of Ralston Creek (pictured)
The boy's father arrived nearly immediately after his son was rescued, Arvada police told the outlet.
Snelling said the family had 'completely protected' the yard before the boy went missing.
'According to the parents, he did find the one spot where he could get over the fence and into the trees behind the house,' Snelling added.
The sun was beginning to set when Arvada officers recovered the missing child. Footage showed him being led away by two policemen.
No other details have been publicly released about the boy's identity or his family.
The Arvada Police Department currently trains its officers to better understand people diagnosed with autism.
Pastor Kevin Shive, a police chaplain who has assisted with the training, suggested that the training had paid off in this rescue.
'I think that's what you are seeing with the Arvada Police Department right now and they were better prepared to better engage and take care of a situation that needed that specialized training,' Shive told KDVR.
Arvada Police Officer Dave Snelling said the boy was found in a place 'that wouldn't have been seen from the officers just patrolling on the street'
Pastor Kevin Shive, who has helped the Arvada police train its officers to better understand people with autism, said this was a case of the department being prepared
The drone, which was deployed from the Arvada police's headquarters within minutes of the reported disappearance, used thermal imaging to find the boy (Stock photo of a drone)
The drone used in the boy's rescue was deployed from the Arvada police's headquarters, according to the outlet.
Drones have increasingly been used as a tool to rescue other children with autism recently, including in Colorado.
In April, the Durango Police Department deployed a drone to look for a 12-year-old boy who had gone missing from the local mall, according to KJCT8.
The drone found that boy 'dangerously close' to the nearby Animas River, where he was seen playing at the edge and trying to walk along a fallen tree's trunk.
One month earlier, a nonverbal boy with autism was found in DeSoto, Texas, with the help of a drone response after he went missing, NBC DFW reported.
Also, last July, a four-year-old nonverbal autistic girl climbed over a fence in Milton, Wisconsin, and went missing.
Six drones were deployed to find her, and she was ultimately found by a volunteer drone, per SpectrumNews1.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the Arvada Police Department for comment.
