Police said Tuesday that Harbe Nagi, a 7-year-old boy with autism who was nonverbal, was found dead in Menands after a search that had stretched into its third day. He had first been reported missing on Sunday afternoon, and investigators now say the circumstances around his death remain under investigation.
That makes the outcome brutally clear for the family and for the people who spent days looking for him. Adam Alharbi wrote on social media Tuesday morning to thank those who helped search for his nephew, after a response that drew helicopters, drones, K9s and help from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
Police said Harbe was last seen about 10 minutes before the 911 call came in around 4:23 p.m. on Sunday, after he was believed to have wandered away from a family gathering on Park Drive. Officers also said he was known to wander and explore, and that he had a strong interest in water, the outdoors and climbing, which made the search unusually difficult from the start.
One detail stood out in the effort to bring him back: DEC Forest Ranger Charles Kabrehl said on Monday afternoon that an ice cream truck was used in an attempt to lure Harbe home. Police also said Harbe enjoyed music, especially Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, as searchers tried to use familiar sounds and sights to draw him in, a sign that crews were working from what they knew about the child rather than relying only on standard ground searches.
The unanswered part is how the search ended in a death. Police have said Harbe was found dead in Menands, but they have not publicly explained how that happened, and they have tied that gap directly to an active investigation. Park Drive will remain closed between Wards Lane and Mountain View while investigators continue their work, keeping the final answer out of reach for now even as the immediate search is over.
What is already established is devastating: a child who was reported missing on Sunday afternoon, whose family and search teams spent days trying to find him, is gone. What remains now is not the search, but the investigation into what took place after he disappeared from Park Drive.
