A mentally disabled man from Gilroy who wandered off from his relatives in Palo Alto is back with them after a five hour ordeal sent police, family members and hospital officials scrambling.
Francisco Pichardo, 39, walked away from his mother and sister at the Stanford Hospital around 4 p.m. Tuesday, but San Mateo County Sheriff's deputies contacted Pichardo about five hours later a few miles south near Alpine Road in San Mateo County, according to Agent Dan Ryan with the Palo Alto Police Department.
Officials were especially worried after Pichardo disappeared because he needs anti-seizure medications and has "the mental abilities of a small child," according to police.
Chris Bone Chris Bone covers City Hall for The Dispatch. Reach him at 847-7109 or e-mail him at cbone@gilroydispatch.com.
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