Did a Bear Help Missing Boy Casey Hathaway? His Family Says So

Casey Hathaway, 3, went missing from his grandmother's home in Ernul, North Carolina on Jan. 22, 2019. He was found on Jan. 24, 2019. (Craven County Sheriff's Office)

The family of a 3-year-old boy from North Carolina claimed that he was protected by a bear while missing for three days.

“He’s good! He’s up and talking. He’s already asked to watch Netflix,” Casey’s mother, Brittany, said after he was found.

Breanna Hathaway, who identified herself as Casey’s aunt, also said the boy told his family he was with a bear for two days.

“Casey is healthy, smiling, and talking. He said he hung out with a bear for two days God sent him a friend to keep him safe,” she wrote on Facebook. “God is good God. Miracles do happen”

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Casey was playing with two other kids in his grandmother’s backyard in Ernul, North Carolina, when he vanished, Craven County Sheriff Chip Hughes told USA Today.

Harsh weather that included heavy rains and winds impacted the search for the child.

Officials were also concerned the boy wasn’t appropriately dressed for the bad weather.

But when he was found, the sheriff’s office said he was in good health.

A release from the FBI said he was discovered by a professional search and rescue crew in Craven County. The search area was termed as dangerous by the sheriff’s office before he was located.

Is It Possible?

“I don’t think there’s a word to describe how happy I was,” Casey’s mother told Inside Edition.

“I wanted to go home,” Casey added.

Wildlife expert Chris Lasher said that the boy may have spotted a bear.

“It is possible that Casey saw a bear,” Lasher noted, adding that the area where he was found is “perfect bear territory.”

But could a bear have taken care of the boy?

“Bears are very nurturing animals, but they take care of their own. I’m not sure a bear would see a young child in distress as a possible something they have to take care of,” Lasher told Inside Edition.

His mom believes her son.

“If he said he was with a bear, he was with a bear,” said hs mother.

Rough Terrain

“The terrain is treacherous. Areas are flooded and filled with sinkholes, even the trained searchers are having trouble navigating safely,” the office told USA Today.

Sheriff’s officials downplayed notions that the boy was abducted from his grandmother’s yard.

Shelley Lynch, a spokesperson for the FBI Charlotte field office, stated: “A relative in the home searched for Casey and when they were unable to find him, called 911,” People reported.

“We went through the woods–through the thicket and the briars,” volunteer Donna Harris told WTVD. “We did it for three-and-a-half, four hours and it was bad. It was really bad out there. If everybody could come and help look for him, it would help. As it got darker, it was scary out there. I just can’t imagine a 3-year-old being out there.”

“The terrain was woods. It was thick in places,” added Max Dudley, a volunteer. “Some places it wasn’t that thick, but we took our time and you see the next person, and you look and you look and you look.”

“You have so many people volunteering from our community and surrounding areas because they were putting themselves in the shoes of the family,” youth pastor Jonathan Ipock said. “What would happen if that was one of their children? It’s just amazing to see everyone come together to help.”