A solar panel worker is being praised for finding a little girl who had been reported missing in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on Wednesday, police said.
Jake Manna was installing solar panels in Buttermilk Bay in Plymouth when he heard that a 5-year-old girl with autism was missing in the neighborhood, Plymouth police said. Though he was unfamiliar with the area, Manna decided to participate in the search, heading down a rural path to a nearby stream. It was there he discovered a diaper and a T-shirt.
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Thinking the girl was close by, Manna walked along the stream to a marsh, where he found the young girl wading in water up to her waist, police said.
Though Manna tried to convince her to get out of the water, the girl continued to wade, according to police. Fortunately, Manna was able to pick the girl up and carry her safely over his shoulder out of the water.
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"If he didn't pick that path and see the missing clothing, we hate to think about what the outcome would have been," the Plymouth Police Department said in a Facebook post.
On Thursday, Jake met with Plymouth police officers Chief Dana Flynn and Captain LeBretton to receive a certificate and Command Coin for his heroic deed. In a post shared to Facebook, they called him the "nicest, most unassuming young man that one could meet."
"That girl had a guardian angel yesterday," said Officer Vinnie Roth, who responded to the report. "And his name is Jake."
