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Berlin Police via AFP / Getty Images
A boy who calls himself "Ray" is seen after arriving in Berlin in September 2011.
MAINZ, Germany -- Berlin police on Wednesday released a photograph of the so-called "forest boy," an English-speaking youth who wandered into the German capital nine months ago saying he had lived in the woods for five years with his father.
Investigators have failed to identify him and police are now hoping the image will prompt leads from the public.
The boy has told authorities his father called him "Ray" and that he was born June 20, 1994. However, he claims not to know his last name or where he's from.
"We have checked his DNA against all missing person reports, sent the data to Interpol so that they could check it internationally, but unfortunately without any success," police spokesman Thomas Neuendorf said.
Investigators told NBC News that DNA evidence suggests Ray is most likely from a neighboring country, as opposed to the United States. Authorities also believe that English might not be his native language.
The boy was unable or refused to give his family name or any other biographical information when he showed up at the German capital's City Hall on September 5.
English-speaking teen: I lived five years in woods
He said his mother, Doreen, died in a car accident when he was 12 and after that he and his father, Ryan, took to the forest. He said they wandered using maps and a compass, staying in tents or caves overnight.
'Many question marks'
He told authorities that after his father died in August, 2011, he buried him in the forest and then walked five days north before ending up in Berlin. Police told NBC News that they have not been able to find a corresponding dead body.
"There are many question marks," Neuendorf added.
Ray has also quickly adapted to city life and technology, using a laptop and his cell phone with no problems.
"Everything gives the impression that he was not far away from civilization for years," Neuendorf told The Associated Press.
The boy is being taken care of by youth services and has been assigned a legal guardian.
Ray is described as being somewhere between 16-20 years old and about 5-foot 11-inches tall. He has dark blonde hair and blue eyes, and three small scars on his forehead, three small scars on his chin and a small scar on his right arm.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Leave a Comment:
Did you see the face on that nose?
The British paper The Daily Mail published a story months ago saying that German authorities have disproven the claims, that the story is a hoax, and that they coinsider the case closed.
Since it seems I can't post the link, Google "Forest Boy is a Fantasist", Mail Online, 19 February 2012.
Hey Ray!
Next time he is one the computer....check out his friends on facebook....LOL!
could be a con but if he was really in the woods for the past 5 years could it be his dad was on the run from something and he just had enough but is still trying to protect him and computers are not that hard to figure out it took my 5 year old about 10 minutes to figure out how to get online and search for big bird his first time on a computer and according to the article he has had 9 month to figure that stuff out. The laptop and cell phone were probably given to him as a gift after he appeared.
Why is it that I recall this same story happening in Berlin about 2 years ago?
I smell a sequel -- "Hanna2 - Brother Ray"
Ummmmm, this is going to be interesting.
He looks a lot like the kid Justin Lewis missing from SD on the center for missing and exploited children website. The hair cut is different...his hair is much longer and lighter than in Justin's picture, but they are about the same age, close to the same height, same eye color, have the same smile....they are uncanny look alikes. However, Justin went missing in May of this year.
Descent looking haircut for living in the woods for the last five years.
Lived in the woods, but has a gold chain around his neck and can use a cell and laptop. This dude "got sum splaining to do!!"
This boy was either kidnapped or he is a runaway. Likely he is a runaway and made up this story. He might had come from an abusive family who neither care for him or told him to get out. One thing is that in his five years, he knows a lot about computers and cellphones. He did not live in the forest that long. Perhaps if he was a runaway and was told to leave his parents would not have given second thought to get him back or report him missing. Then again, he might have murdered both his parents over drugs.
It is riduculous to think this young man would not know his last name. A three year old child knows it's last name. He is a runaway, and you can tell by looking at him, he is only about 16. He should not take quite so quickly and easily to the technology world either, is a bit of a give away there.
I guess we'd call him the "Woods" boy, since we have woods all around us. I'll wait and see before I form an opinion on this, not enough information really.
This reminds me of when they first found Ben Linus on the island in Lost. Maybe they should torture him to get the truth out.
Here in the US we have hundreds of thousands of people (including teens) living in the woods, under bridges, in parks, in old campers, and cars in parking lots. If we only had a news story about each one of these people.
It's Bush's fault
Signed: a democrat
This kid is pulling off one major con job. He is a plant for somebody, give the kid if he is a that young a few weeks or months and the story will unroll like toilet paper
Just wait for the lifetime tv movie. Then you'll know what really happened.
if he has been liveing in woods where did he get the f@#%ing necklace
Maybe he is the offspring of the Norway idiot Anders Breivic. Looking at their photos, they could be related and who would need a new identity more than a relative of that guy?
Is this the same person?
Please tell me people aren't falling for this BS . . . .
I bet Hawaii can find a birth certificate for him.
HA! No kidding. Hope they do a better job on Forest Boy's certif.
Definitely a funny way to bring in politics appropriately. Love it!
Seems like he's pulling a fast one, that's for sure. Hope he's ready to pay the consequences if it blows up in his face. My question is where are his parents and did he do something to them that cause him to go into hiding. How do they know for sure that his mother died in a car accident. "Unable or refused to give family name" sounds even more suspicious to me.