A young man has been discovered in a remote wooded area, five days after he went missing following a New Year's Eve church service. Eduardo Mauricio da Silva, 23, was located by his own family in a state of confusion and physical distress, bringing a tense search to a close.
The New Year's Eve Disappearance
Eduardo Mauricio da Silva vanished in the early hours of New Year's Day in Bertioga, a municipality in Brazil's São Paulo state. Reports indicate that shortly before midnight on December 31, he asked a colleague to drop him off on the side of a highway in the Sítio São João neighbourhood, claiming he was going to a friend's house.
His last known contact with family was a text message to his father at around 2am on January 1, asking him to call a car via an app. His father, who was asleep, only saw the message upon waking later that morning and realised his son was not at home.
A Desperate Family Search
By 5pm on New Year's Day, a formal missing person report was filed. The family spearheaded the search effort, receiving crucial images from surveillance cameras that showed Eduardo in a wooded area of the Caiubura neighbourhood.
The breakthrough came when a member of the public contacted the family with a potential sighting. Acting on this tip, Eduardo's family and friends located him on January 5. His aunt, Dalva Rosa da Silva, 39, praised the relentless efforts, stating: "We received clues every day that passed... He was found by his own family and dear friends, who dedicated themselves all this time, went into the woods and didn't give up."
Recovery and Ongoing Mystery
When found in what was described as a "very remote forest," Eduardo was in a poor condition. Dalva revealed he was "very weak, malnourished, and disoriented" and appeared emotionally shaken. The exact circumstances leading to his five-day ordeal remain unclear.
The Fire Department was alerted on Monday, January 5, but were informed the missing man had already been located by his family. Eduardo was subsequently taken to hospital in the Baixada Santista municipality for treatment and assessment.
In a separate but coincidental incident, another man, 19-year-old Roberto Farias Tomaz, went missing on New Year's Day while hiking on Pico Paraná, southern Brazil's highest peak. He was also found alive after five days, having walked approximately 20km through difficult terrain to reach safety.
