Hernandez's mother, Marisela Garcia, 38, spent nearly two weeks in a panic over her missing son mainly because the boy has Asperger's syndrome, a developmental disorder affecting his ability to socialize or communicate. Garcia said her son disappeared after he thought he would get in trouble for something that happened at school. Garcia said she is disappointed about how little help she got from the police department when she contacted them about her son. She said she and her husband finally took matters into their own hands by passing out fliers around the area before eventually seeking the help of the Mexican consulate in New York.A transit police officer saw Hernandez at the final stop of one of the trains on Coney Island. He was returned home a little skinnier, but unharmed. Garcia said her son has not opened up about what went on in the 11 days he was missing, but he did tell her he survived off of $11 and lollipops and potato chips, slept on the train and used public restrooms within the system. Hernandez wore the same clothes for the duration of his time on the subway.Garcia said her son did not ask for help or communicate with anyone. Experts said that it is not uncommon for individuals with Asperger's not to communicate with others.
Hernandez's mother, Marisela Garcia, 38, spent nearly two weeks in a panic over her missing son mainly because the boy has Asperger's syndrome, a developmental disorder affecting his ability to socialize or communicate. Garcia said her son disappeared after he thought he would get in trouble for something that happened at school. Garcia said she is disappointed about how little help she got from the police department when she contacted them about her son. She said she and her husband finally took matters into their own hands by passing out fliers around the area before eventually seeking the help of the Mexican consulate in New York.
A transit police officer saw Hernandez at the final stop of one of the trains on Coney Island. He was returned home a little skinnier, but unharmed. Garcia said her son has not opened up about what went on in the 11 days he was missing, but he did tell her he survived off of $11 and lollipops and potato chips, slept on the train and used public restrooms within the system. Hernandez wore the same clothes for the duration of his time on the subway.
Garcia said her son did not ask for help or communicate with anyone. Experts said that it is not uncommon for individuals with Asperger's not to communicate with others.
Just what propelled Francisco to take flight on Oct. 15 is unclear. Administrators at his school, Intermediate School 281, would not comment. But Francisco said he had failed to complete an assignment for an eighth-grade class, and was scolded for not concentrating.After school, he phoned his mother to say he was heading home. She told him the school had called and she wanted a serious talk with him.His first impulse was to flee. He walked eight blocks to the Bay Parkway station and boarded a D train. It seemed a safe place to hide, he said.
After school, he phoned his mother to say he was heading home. She told him the school had called and she wanted a serious talk with him.
His first impulse was to flee. He walked eight blocks to the Bay Parkway station and boarded a D train. It seemed a safe place to hide, he said.
