Lake Elsinore PD Responds Quickly to Report of Missing Autistic Teen

An autistic teen from Lake Elsinore gave Riverside County Sheriff's Deputies cause for concern again this week, when he was reported missing for the second time since November.

Eric Ortiz, who "... has the mental alertness of 5-year-old," was reported missing late Sunday night, around 10:30 p.m., according to Sheriff's Lt. Zachary Hall.  

By 10:30 a.m. Monday, a Canyon Lake Police Officer spotted the man near the lake.

"As a precaution, he was taken to Inland Valley Hospital to be evaluated by medical staff," Hall said in a press release issued Monday.

Ortiz, who lives on Olive Street, had been the subject of a missing persons report back in November.  He was ultimately found in Perris, at a movie theater.

Prior to that incident, he had been reported missing and found on the I-15 freeway, officials said at the time.