Raleigh police find all 5 young men who left Raleigh hospital without permission
All five young men who left Holly Hill Children’s Hospital in Raleigh on Tuesday have been found and are safe, hospital officials and police said Thursday.
Raleigh police had been looking for the young men since 8 p.m. Tuesday, when they reportedly walked away without permission from the hospital at 201 Michael J. Smith Lane near the Raleigh Beltline.
The search, which lasted “an extended period of time,” included using a Western Wake EMS drone, but could not find them, police said in a news release.
WRAL talked with parents of two patients who confirmed that their sons were among the missing young men. One parent told WRAL that her 16-year-old son said in a phone call this week that other juveniles had previously left the hospital.
The hospital did not share any additional information about what happened or the search for their son, the parent told WRAL.
The parent of a 15-year-old patient told WRAL that police had said one of the five young men had taken a badge to leave the hospital.
Holly Hill Children’s Hospital opened in 2014 to provide psychiatric treatment to young patients, ages 5 to 17. It expanded in 2020, with plans for up to 71 beds.
“Our facility is staffed appropriately to care for the patients who are with us for treatment,” Leigh Holston, the hospital’s chief executive officer, said in an email statement. “Due to HIPAA patient privacy laws, we cannot offer further comment on specific patients or their care or treatment.”
This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 10:35 AM.
