Relief after missing Ben, 10, is found

Monday 24th March 2008, 11:12AM GMT.

A 10-year-old schoolboy who vanished on his way home from a friend’s house in Birmingham has been found.

Ben Smythe went missing from Bromford in Birmingham at 7pm on Sunday night, sparking fears for his safety.

Officers scrambled the force helicopter to aid in the search and have been trawling CCTV footage and checking open spaces for any sign of the youngster.

But Ben turned up at an address in Kingstanding, Birmingham, at 2.35pm this afternoon.

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said: “It is not clear where Ben has been since he went missing yesterday evening, but he is safe and well and specially trained officers will be speaking to him in due course to discover his whereabouts.

“Ben will be reunited with his parents.”

Earlier today detectives said they were “extremely concerned” for Ben’s safety.

He had been out playing football with his 12-year-old pal Simon Kesterton shortly before going missing.

They had then gone to a chip shop before Ben decided to walk the short distance to his home in Bromford Drive.



Free e-Supplements

TWITTER

Shropshire Star on Twitter Shropshire Star on Twitter

Keep updated with the latest breaking news and content on our Twitter feed.

Lifestyle

Interactive Dining Out map Interactive Dining Out map

Hundreds of reviews by the Shropshire Star and Express & Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.

Entertainment

All the film reviews All the film reviews

Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases.

OUR NEW APP

Get the new Shropshire Star app Get the new Shropshire Star app

Download the Shropshire Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.