The mother of a missing seven-year-old has told of her relief after he was found by police hiding in his granny's loft.
Carson Shephard was reported missing from the property where he lives with his grandmother Jacquie McCartney in New Cumnock, Ayrshire on Sunday.
His disappearance at around 7.20pm yesterday sparked a huge search operation involving sniffer dogs and helicopters, with teams of local people joining the hunt and searching sheds and buildings for him.
Carson's mum Gemma Glover, said she was fearing the worst before her boy was discovered by specialist cops during a third search of the attic.
Relieved Gemma, who lives in Rutherglen near Glasgow, said she found out her son was missing through Facebook at 11.30pm last night as her phone was broken.
The worried 27-year-old had raced to Afton Bridgend, New Cumnock to join the search.
The mum-of-two said when Carson still hadn't been found by 10am, she was beside herself.
Gemma told the Daily Record: “We were fearing the worst.
“With the weather the way it was last night I didn’t think he was going to make it through.
“It was a horrible feeling this morning seeing all the kids going to school holding their mum and dad’s hands, and I’m just thinking ‘he’s not survived this cold all night’.
“The police searched the loft three times and didn’t find him.
"Then they brought in the specialist team this morning and using heat sensors they discovered him lying under insulation in the loft.
“My daughter was asking, ‘why are you searching there again? You’ve searched three times,’ and then they found him.
Gemma said the relief was indescribable when they found Carson.
She said: “It was an amazing feeling when the police said they had good news.”
“He’s been living with my mum for a few months now.
“We’re just so relieved. We’re laughing now but trust me, we were not laughing earlier on.
“We didn’t think he was going to make it through the night.
“But he was in the house the whole time. He had a wee cover and even said he managed to have a sleep.”
She added: "He’s not in any trouble, we’re just glad he’s okay.
Reports on social media say that local residents and those living further afield have volunteered to help with the search effort.
