A 15-year-old boy with autism who went missing during a school field trip at a sprawling New Jersey state park was found safe Wednesday evening, after a search that pulled in hundreds of law enforcement officers, volunteers and search dogs over nearly eight hours.
Kamilo Giraldo, of Howell, New Jersey, was last seen wearing a blue jacket and gray pants at Monmouth Battlefield State Park in Manalapan at 11:46 a.m. Wednesday morning. He had gone missing while on a class trip just before noon at the park, which straddles Manalapan and Freehold Township in Monmouth County.
Authorities said Giraldo is autistic and verbal but may be unable to communicate exact thoughts, a detail that shaped the urgency of the response as the hours ticked by. Shortly after Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office issued the public alert, local and county agencies fanned out across the historic park’s woods, fields and trails.
A race against fading daylight
Monmouth Battlefield State Park spans 2,764 acres, and local and state police flooded the area as the search intensified. Drones were used overhead, and the effort drew assistance from first responders and local parents who brought flashlights and prepared to search the wooded park.
Deputies, police and search dogs spent hours searching the park after the teenager disappeared during the school field trip. As afternoon turned to evening, concern grew throughout the day as the search continued into darker and colder conditions, and those following the search repeatedly asked whether the teenager was safe.
Among those who showed up to help was a volunteer searcher named Amy Cowley, who has a personal connection to the kind of search underway. “We just felt a need that we needed to get out here and help and then my sister has autism too, so I know how hard it can be to find somebody who goes missing that’s autistic,” she said, adding, “The kids don’t — they have so many teachers with them. So, for somebody to go missing it’s very hard to fathom.”
Found safe after nearly eight hours
The search ended with good news. Eyewitness News learned the teen was found shortly after 7 p.m., ending a search that lasted nearly eight hours. Authorities said the boy was safely located and described the search as a success.
The Toms River Office of Emergency Management, which assisted with the regional response, said the search effort drew hundreds of first responders and volunteers to the Manalapan area, and confirmed the teenager was safe and being reunited with his family. It remains unclear where in the park the 15-year-old was located.
The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office later released a statement crediting the scale of the operation for the outcome. “Prosecutor Santiago would like to thank all law enforcement and the over 100 total resources who came together in a truly collaborative effort to bring Kamilo Giraldo to safety,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The office also extended its thanks to 40 MCPO detectives and local agencies who helped to ensure that Giraldo was found unharmed. The response brought together the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Manalapan Police, New Jersey State Police and numerous local first responders and agencies, according to reporting from The Lakewood Scoop. Monmouth County Sheriff Shaun Golden also thanked the agencies involved, commending their dedication, professionalism and cooperation.
A historic park turned into a search zone
Monmouth Battlefield State Park is best known as the preserved site of the Revolutionary War’s Battle of Monmouth, fought in 1778, and it draws hikers, horseback riders and history buffs to its orchards, fields, woods and wetlands. That same rural, wooded terrain — miles of trails spread across a historic landscape — became the backdrop for a very different kind of operation Wednesday, as searchers worked to cover as much ground as possible before nightfall.
The scale of the response reflected how seriously authorities treated the disappearance of a teenager who, because of his autism, might not have been able to call out for help or describe his location if approached by rescuers. That risk is part of why agencies moved quickly to deploy drones, canine units and large numbers of personnel rather than wait and see if Giraldo turned up on his own.
What remains unknown
Officials have not publicly detailed exactly where in the park Giraldo was found or what led searchers to that location. Authorities also have not released additional information about the circumstances of how he first became separated from his school group. Patch has previously reported that if the teen were found, the public was asked to contact the Manalapan Township Police Department directly rather than approach him, a precaution tied to his communication needs.
Key takeaway
The search for Kamilo Giraldo shows how quickly local, county and state agencies can mobilize when a missing person has a condition that could make a routine disappearance far more dangerous. The successful outcome, after hundreds of responders and volunteers converged on a nearly 2,800-acre park, underscores both the risks school groups face at large outdoor sites and the value of a fast, well-resourced response.
