Toronto man, missing for 5 years, found wandering on Brazilian highway

"I thought, if he says he's Canadian, I'm sure I can find his family."

She took her search online, and finally made a connection through Twitter.

The news that Anton had been found reached Stefan in late December.

"I was really shocked … I didn't want to get my hopes up," he said.

He immediately made plans to travel to Brazil to retrieve his brother, launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to help pay for costs of the trip, which included flights, hospital bills and consular fees.

He also set to work getting his brother an emergency travel document that would allow him to get home.

'We got him just in time'

After he was picked up by the police and his family was notified he was in Brazil, Anton was placed in a hospital.

Shortly after, he ran away and headed into a jungle area in the northern Brazilian state of Amazonas, prompting a new round of worry for the police and his family.

"That is the area where we talk about huge predators like crocodiles and jungle cats. We truly were afraid he could be eaten by one of those animals," said Vidigal.

She said she was "so glad" when Anton was found safe again and placed in a hospital in Manaus.

When Stefan arrived to pick him up in late January, he "looked really rough."

"His health was starting to deteriorate," said Stefan. "We got him just in time."

Now his brother is doing "remarkably well," he said.

Stefan felt his brother was not ready for an interview in his first days back in Toronto, but Anton, speaking to BBC Brasil last week, told a reporter that he was happy to be found.

"I know that I am very lucky to be alive," he said. "I am very happy to be able to return to my family."

5 years spent off the grid

As for where exactly Anton had been in the five years since he was last seen in Toronto, the gaps are still being filled in.

"I haven't wanted to press him too much about it," said Stefan.

Anton is something of an "individualist" who prides himself on being tough, Stefan said, and people who know him won't be surprised that he undertook a journey across two continents on foot.

Picking up the pieces

In the two years leading up to his disappearance, the family had struggled to get Anton the support and treatment he needed.

In January 2011, Anton was involved in an altercation and charged with assault and weapons offences. He went missing before he was due in court.

After he disappeared, the family notified police and tried to spread the word, checking shelters, jails and morgues for any trace of him, but the search turned up no leads.

"When someone disappears you suddenly realize there isn't a lot you can do," said Stefan. "We hit a wall."

After Anton's return to Toronto Monday, Toronto police said he was arrested for his outstanding charges before being released later in the day on bail. He has upcoming court dates to address the charges.

As for what comes next for the family, first up is to simply "hold him close," said Stefan.

Then the family will work to get Anton "a place to live and some treatment and some help," he said. "And help him have the life he deserves."

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