A recent UF graduate who was missing in Rio de Janeiro was found alive in a hospital Wednesday morning.
Horica Ionescu, who graduated from UF in May, was last seen on the morning of Sept. 2 by his host family.
Ionescu was taking classes to become certified to teach English as a second language. When he missed two days of classes, his teacher notified the local police and the U.S. Embassy.
Ionescu’s sister, Georgeta, said she and her family knew something was wrong when he skipped class because that was unlike him.
She said they did not think he had been kidnapped because they did not receive a ransom note.
Georgeta said her brother was not injured, but he had been in a Brazilian hospital the entire time he was missing. She said the hospital staff had trouble determining who he was because he had no identification with him.
She said Horica is talking, but he does not know where he is or what happened to him. Their mother is flying to Rio de Janeiro tomorrow to be with him.
“Something happened to him,” Georgeta said.
