Searchers find toddler, dad still missing near Denton Creek

DENTON COUNTY, Texas - A search team found a missing 2-year-old boy wandering around the bank of Denton Creek a day after he and his father disappeared.

Trophy Club PD spokeswoman Tracy Shields said the toddler named Oliver approached the searchers around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. He said he was cold, hungry and scared. He also had some scratches on him, but otherwise appeared to be in good condition.

“The fact that he’s in such great shape is really a miracle,” she said.

Oliver was taken to Cook Children’s Hospital for an evaluation and will be reunited with his mother. Meanwhile, crews are still searching for his 38-year-old father, Matthew Meinert, an avid fisherman from Trophy Club.

The search, involving drones and canines, finished at dusk Tuesday night. The group will start back up Wednesday morning at 9 a.m., but it becomes a recovery mission.

The pair disappeared Monday around 8 p.m. while fishing in the creek above Lake Grapevine. Police say Meinert sent a selfie with Oliver to his wife just an hour and a half earlier.

Teams from multiple law enforcement agencies searched for them until about 2 a.m. They found their boat on the shore, but no one was in it.

Based on the location where the boat was found and things found in the water, Shields said investigators do believe there was some sort of accident, but it doesn't appear the toddler was ever submerged in the water.

Shields said Oliver was found in the area near the boat, but he didn’t say much about what happened.

“As we deal with 2-year-olds, they don’t often say much. But after what he went through all night, we’re not surprised that his only concern is getting something to drink right now,” she said.

Investigators are hoping he will be able to tell them more about what happened once he is reunited with his mother.

The Lewisville Fire dive team will be standing by and ready to dive into the water if they see anything.