Buffalo Police initially reported the boy's age at four years. The boy is two and it has been reflected in our web story.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - A young boy who went missing from a home on West Utica Tuesday morning was saved by an unlikely hero: an Uber driver.
Buffalo Police said the Uber driver found the boy, 2, around 2:30 a.m. when the boy simply unlocked the door and walked out. The driver immediately took the boy to Oishei Children's Hospital, where police were then notified.
"At approximately 8:30 this morning we did receive a call from West Utica of a missing two-year-old," Buffalo Police Captain Jeff Rinaldo told reporters in an update on Tuesday morning.
The boy was being cared for by his grandfather while the mother was working overnight. Rinaldo said the boy left the home unnoticed sometime between 2 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. and was found within "a couple hundred feet" of the home wearing boots but it's unknown if he was wearing a jacket. Child Protective Services is investigating whether or not any charges will be pressed.
"We look at a number of factors," Rinaldo replied when asked how charges would be determined. "Number one is have there been any other incidents at the residence involving the children? We talk with CPS and ask if there are any open CPS cases. Is there any history of neglect or abuse? We look at those things combined and make a determination whether the house was appropriate for the child and was there appropriate safety mechanisms in case."
In this case, Rinaldo said the door was closed and locked.
Rinaldo commended the Uber driver for saving the child and taking him to the hospital.
"It was definitely the right thing to do," Rinaldo said.
Rinaldo said that any and all precautions such as door latches and doorknob covers can help prevent instances like these from happening.
