IREDELL COUNTY, N.C. — Investigators say they want to know where 14-year-old Gideon Ferguson has been, or if anyone encouraged him to leave his home.
Ferguson was found safe Saturday after more than a 50-hour search that included law enforcement, volunteers, drones and even billboards.
News that Ferguson was found has come as a huge relief to residents in the Amity Hill area. Many signs were put up, calling attention to the case.
The community pulled together to find the teenager.
Unlike so many child disappearances, this one had a happy ending.
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“We are happy to report he was found safe, and he’s being thoroughly evaluated by medical personnel,” said Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell.
He was found off of Triplett Road about a mile and a half from his home. A neighbor spotted him in his yard and brought the shivering teen inside to warm up.
“Now we’ll stay continuous on the investigation with our federal partners to basically see what this juvenile encountered over the last 56 hours,” Sheriff Campbell said.
FBI agents worked a digital trail and deputies conducted a ground search along with help from volunteers and other departments, but it’s clear that Gideon chose to leave voluntarily.
“He basically said he had a bad day,” the sheriff said.
The teen was determined not to be found and even ditched his phone because he knew it could be tracked.
“Obviously he was smart,” said Sheriff Campbell. “We were just lucky we stayed one step ahead, there were things he did not know we were capable of.”
Investigators believe that somehow the teen was able to leave the area and returned. The community went all out to help find Ferguson.
Sheriff Campbell thanked those involved in getting billboards up so people traveling on interstates were made of Ferguson’s disappearance.
“I can’t say enough how blessed we are,” he said.
One of the main questions is how did Ferguson leave the area and how did he get back. Authorities also want to make sure he wasn’t under the influence of any adult.
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