1,100-Mile Bus Trip Reunites Mother and Mystery Deaf Boy

A deaf and mute mystery child found wandering the streets last fall was reunited with his mother, ending a seven-month search for his identity.

Jose de Jesus Garcia Aguilera, who is believed to be 8 or 9, brightened Tuesday when he saw his mother, Micaela Aguilera de Garcia, who took a 1,100-mile bus trip to Juarez from her home in Tampico after seeing a television report about the mystery boy in Juarez.

The joyous reunion was in the offices of the child welfare agency in Ciudad Juarez, across the border from El Paso, Tex., where the boy has lived since he was found Nov. 7 walking alone near a city park.

The mother said the boy, who was known as Sabat because he was found on a Saturday, hugged her and smiled during the reunion.

The U.S. Consulate had entered the case after social workers began to think Jose might be a U.S. citizen. His picture was distributed across the United States and in other countries in the hope his relatives would see him.

At one point, a Frenchwoman who lives in Normandy saw his photo and thought he might be her grandson. She told authorities that her son lives in El Paso not far from where the boy was found, but the lead didn’t check out.