A 23-year-old man named Dominic from Heelsum has been found alive after six months and reunited with his family, police said.

Dominic had been missing since February 27. Large-scale search operations were conducted, including on the Ginkelse Heide. Search teams, among them the Search and Rescue Team Nederland and the Reddingshondenteam RHWW, carried out multiple searches.

Last week, Dominic contacted his family himself. The Nationaal Drone Team then retrieved him from abroad.

His family had no clear reason for his disappearance. “We have no indication at all why he left. He has been through a great deal, but in our view that is not why he left. He is a very sweet boy, especially very helpful, and he is very good at cooking. That is really his passion,” his sister Noa said earlier.

His mother, Judith, said on behalf of the family, “Dominic is home. It is a miracle and so fantastic. Since his disappearance, hope has always kept me going, however difficult and heavy it was. There have been moments when I thought Dominic would no longer be alive, but my mother’s instinct always said: he is still alive. And that mother’s feeling has clearly not let me down.”

Police thanked everyone for the tips and attention given to the search for Dominic.