ORLANDO, Fla. – A missing 10-year-old boy was found safe Monday morning after being spotted by a motorist near an Orlando grocery store, officials said.
[AUDIO: Motorist calls 911 after finding missing boy]
"I was like 'uh oh,'" said Michael Joseph DelVecchio, who was spotted near the Publix grocery store at Orange Blossom Trail and Weatherbee Road at around 8 a.m. "I've got to be in a little trouble."
Deputies say he spent the night in the cold, where Local 6 Meteorologist Troy Bridges says it dipped to 46 degrees overnight.
DelVecchio told Local 6 he left home around 4 p.m. on Sunday after he got in trouble at home.
He said he walked from his home on Crosshair Circle to the WalMart Neighborhood Market on Orange Blossom Trail, where he bought some food.
He said he then walked to the Dollar General Store nearby where he bought candy.
He said the cashier asked him where his parents were, and he told her they were in the car waiting for him.
DelVecchio left the store and walked approximately one mile north on Orange Blossom Trail, where he decided to get some sleep.
To stay warm, DelVecchio told Local 6 he made a bed of palm fronds and covered himself with them behind a subdivisions welcome sign. He said it's a trick he learned from friends who were members of the Boy Scouts of America.
He was bitten by bugs during his short time sleeping.
"I didn't sleep much," he said.
DelVecchio said he walked around most of the night, finally being spotted by a passing motorist around 8 a.m. more than a mile-and-a-half from his home.
According to the Orange County Sheriff's Office, the motorist recognized Michael from media reports and called 911 after talking to the boy.
The caller said he wanted to make sure Michael didn't try to sneak away.
"Why don't you come sit down on the curb with me?" the caller is heard in the 911 call asking Michael. "I want to talk to you about the book you have in your backpack. My son reads that same book, and he likes it a lot."
DelVecchio's father, John, said he was up all night, as well.
He said he called deputies after his son was gone from home for more than two hours.
"I was driving around the neighborhood looking for him," he said. "I feared the worst. I thought he might have been kidnapped, you don't know what could happen."
Reunited with his family, the 10-year-old says he's glad to be back, and he said he's learned a big lesson.
"I learned not to go out by myself again," he said.