A Middletown teenager missing for five days has been found safe 500 miles away in Virginia, according to police.
Sussex Co. Deputies found Nathan Carman, 17, around 8:30 p.m. Monday. They he was driving a scooter and looking for a safe place to sleep for the night.
During an interview with deputies, Carman told detectives that he took a bus to Virginia, bought the scooter in Hopewell, outside Richmond, and planned to drive it all the way to Florida.
Earlier Monday, Nathan's father Clark Carman stood outside the Middletown Police Department pleading for his son to come home.
"Come home," he said. "We all miss him so. Don't be afraid to contact us or police."
He'd been searching for his son, Nathan, since Thursday. The teen suffers from Asperger's Syndrome.
The 17-year-old Middletown boy was last seen in New Haven on Thursday afternoon, hours after he left his home.
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A surveillance photo taken near the corner of Temple and Chapel Streets in the Elm City shows the last known image of Nathan. It's believed he may have taken a bus to New Haven.
On Sunday two dozen volunteers combed the streets in that city.
Monday, the family and police took the case nationally. Nathan's photo and information will be distributed by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Loved ones have also started a Facebook page.
Police believe Nathan was missing his closest friend. "He still, we believe, is grieving from the loss of his horse," Lt. Gary Wallace said.
His father said the horse was a very special partner for his son.
"So with him he has no friends," Carman said. "That was his friend." Sussex Co. Deputied said Carman was carrying two pictures of himself with his horse.