The Woodbridge Township Police Department received a frantic call from an autistic little boy demanding they find his lost teddy bear and boy did they search and find it.
The call wasn't about any horrible crime, an assault or murder, it was an innocent call from Ryan Paul an autistic boy, who had misplaced his teddy bear and wanted help finding it.
He said to the operator on the call, "My teddy bear fell down again. Don't worry I'll rescue you again. Goodbye again. See you again,"
The operator got the call passed to Officer Khari Manzini, who'd received training POAC Autism Services, and as part of the department's policy, Manzini responded to the hangup call.
Manzini says, "Whenever we can use that training to make sure that not only do we keep ourselves safe, but those folks that we're helping out safe." He added, "You know, it makes a great difference."
When Manzini appeared at the door, Ryan' father, Bob, was shell-shocked as he asked, "Ryan, did you call 911?" Ryan admitted that he had, explaining, "Teddy bear rescue."
Manzini began searching along with Ryan and they found the stuffed toy that had fell down beside Ryan's bed. "He just couldn't have been more accommodating or understanding," Paul said. "It was really great."
But as a responsible parent, Paul made sure to tell Ryan that a missing toy did not constitute an emergency.
