A six-year-old boy believed to have vanished after playing with some children outside his South Auckland home last night - triggering a large-scale, high-profile search this morning - has been found safe with a family who said they didn't know he was missing.
Walter Everitt was found this morning at an address in Weymouth, Manukau City, near where he was last seen.
Police were out in force searching for Walter, who hadn't been seen since 6.25pm, as were members of the local community.
The family he was staying with approached police after noticing the unusual activity in the neighbourhood, police said in a statement. There was no concern for the child's wellbeing, authorities said.
“I really want to thank the public and those who assisted us in the last 12 hours searching,” Detective Senior Sergeant Alexander said.
“This was a traumatic experience for his family and we’re glad that it came to a happy and safe conclusion.”
The boy's aunt told the NZ Herald that it was a misunderstanding involving a sleepover.
"A lady saw the Facebook posts and alerted the police that he had stayed at her house without her knowing," the relative said.
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