Rudy Farias had vanished on March 6, 2015.
More than eight years ago, a 17-year-old in Texas went missing, leaving behind a perplexing mystery that remained unsolved until Saturday when he reappeared as a 25-year-old man, according to a report in NBC News. Rudy Farias, hailing from Houston, had been a cause of nationwide concern, but the Texas Centre for the Missing announced that he had been found "safe" and was currently undergoing recovery in a hospital, without disclosing the reasons for his hospitalisation, the outlet further reported.
Mr Farias was last seen walking his two dogs near his home in northwest Houston on March 6, 2015.
The dogs returned home without their leashes, but Farias, then a teenager, vanished without a trace.
Family members said that Mr Farias had been battling depression, and the situation deteriorated after he lost his brother in a motorcycle accident years earlier, as per NBC News.
"His brother was his best friend in the world. He's experienced far more than any person his age should ever have to endure," Brenda Paradise, a private investigator hired by the Farias family, had told the outlet in April 2015.
As per ABC7, Texas EquuSearch enlisted the public's assistance in locating Farias, noting that he might have been disoriented and not taking his prescribed medication.
The search for then-17-year-old was temporarily suspended on March 10, 2015, while authorities gathered additional information. However, two days later, on March 12, the search resumed and concluded the following day.
On March 13, 2015, authorities expressed gratitude to the searchers who braved the rain-soaked fields while looking for Farias, as per ABC7.
Finally, on July 2, 2023, authorities officially confirmed that Mr Farias had been found safe, although the specific details regarding his disappearance still remain unclear.