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me.” He gave his first name as "Ray" and that his date of birth was 20 June 1994. had claimed that his father had died in August 2011 and that he had buried him "in a hole in the forest underneath some stones" and that his mother had died in a car crash when he was 12 and that van Helsum received scars on his face. (Unknown to van Helsum, his real father died in
February 2012, not knowing what had happened to his son.) He was wearing a golden-coloured necklace around his neck with the pendant "D", the first letter in his mother's name. He had appeared without a passport and any form of identification. "Ray" spoke English with a slight accent suggesting to the German Authorities that one or both of his parents were American or British. Police in Berlin believed that he may have been from the Czech Republic having given the indication that he lived in the undergrowth of the
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age of 18 when officials discovered that he had impregnated a fellow resident of the facility. Upon hearing the news of the pregnancy, van Helsum disagreed with the pregnant woman over plans for the child as van Helsum did not want the child whereas she expressed interest for the child to be born. His son, Damien, was born in 2010. At the same time, van Helsum was working as an intern at
Voicedata, a local telecommunications company which he left in February 2011. After leaving his job, van Helsum went into a Youth Hostel. During his time there, he spent most of his time using a computer and often argued with the hostel owners over payment of bills.
262:(Youth Office). During his time in care, he was around other teenagers but had spoken little, having little knowledge of the German language. Van Helsum shared a room with another boy, showing the ability to eat with a knife and fork and went bowling with fellow residents. He was later moved to a long-term Hostel. Van Helsum had adapted to life in Berlin quickly. He was going to school and became adapted with technology, using a laptop and mobile phone, he had also learnt more German by taking lessons. and received pocket money. English language experts were employed attempting to determine where his origins were without any success.
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218:. Van Helsum's father Johan fought and won a custody case against his ex-wife and moved his sons back to the Netherlands upon their return to his legal guardianship. His father was known by his coworkers to be a dedicated father and brought up the children on a strict routine. Van Helsum had become traumatised as his mother attempted to contact her son by sending him gifts with van Helsum showing no interest.
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and other major police forces and showed that van Helsum did not have a criminal record. Police attempted to search for a grave with no success and van Helsum was unable to locate the forest he was living in. A couple from
Switzerland had contacted police to come forward believing that van Helsum was
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on 5 September 2011. The distance of about 500 km could not have been hiked in five days, implying that Van Helsum either hiked even longer or used other means of transportation. At the city hall, he spoke to the office workers saying; "I'm all alone in the world, I don't know who I am. Please help
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He attended the ROC van Twente
College to study Media and Communications. He was known to miss classes and did not gain his final certificate. Van Helsum moved to a group home under supervised accommodation at the age of 16, after he became estranged from his father, but was forced to leave at the
209:
Van Helsum was born on 22 April 1992 to Doreen and Johan van Helsum. Van Helsum's parents divorced shortly after he was born, and his mother emigrated to
Portugal taking him and his older brother. As a child, he was rebellious towards his father and was known to be shy and rarely socialised. He is
201:, where he buried his father after the latter died in August 2011. Dubbed "Forest Boy" by the media, van Helsum later admitted that the disappearance was a hoax and was sentenced to 160 hours of community service. Van Helsum was believed to have vanished before he was discovered working in Berlin.
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Van Helsum was evicted from the
Jugendamt shelter on 18 June 2012. As he is not a minor, he cannot be forced to return to the Netherlands. A spokesperson of the Berlin Jugendamt stated they were going to file a complaint against van Helsum for falsely acquiring youth assistance. He could face
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Van Helsum was believed to have vanished, and the German
Authorities believed he spent the summer moving from village to village with unconfirmed sightings in Berlin. His ex-girlfriend made an emotional appeal on Dutch television hoping that contact would be made between the pair.
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A court case against van Helsum was held in Berlin on 26 September 2013. The court decided to drop the complaint of fraud if van Helsum will agree to 150 hours of community service. The Berlin
Jugendamt could still demand payment back of costs incurred in a civil case.
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With the attempts at identification of "Forest boy Ray" having failed, the Berlin police released a photograph in early June 2012, requesting identification. Van Helsum was then identified by a former girlfriend, whereupon he admitted having made up his story.
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newspaper published a blurred photograph head and shoulders portrait of van Helsum. The photograph was blurred as the authorities suspected him of being a minor. In
November 2011, van Helsum's
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criminal charges and as much as a euro 30,000 (US$ 40,000) fine. Social services had complained about not receiving an apology or any sign of gratitude when van Helsum was in care.
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One week before his trek into
Germany, van Helsum posted a message on the internet stating the need for housing for a long period of time to share with a roommate.
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was taken to a local police data bank after he initially refused to give a sample. Fingerprints and photographs, along with DNA samples, circulated through
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three days later, claiming his mother had died in an automobile crash when he was 12 and that he had lived with his father for five years in the forests of
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with a friend named Lex. The pair hiked with the help of a map and compass, and both stayed in tents overnight. He showed up at
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Believed to be a minor and an orphan, van Helsum was provided shelter in social care housing in western Berlin by the Berlin
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According to friends from his hometown of Hengelo, he was inspired by the films of
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Van Helsum reportedly made a five-day trek into Germany from his residence in
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189:) is a Dutch citizen who went missing on 2 September 2011 and appeared in the
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597:"'Forest Boy' who hoaxed police was running from his troubles, friend says"
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1089:"'Forest Boy' Could Face Charges After Story Debunked by Police"
480:"Mystery surrounding Germany's 'Forest Boy' continues to unfold"
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887:"Mystery deepens as police try to identify German 'forest boy'"
812:"Forest boy Ray found in Germany could be from Czech Republic"
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619:"German police seek help identifying teen who lived in woods"
989:"German forest boy 'is fantasist' who made up tragic tale"
1020:"Swiss Couple Claims Mysterious 'Forest Boy' Is Grandson"
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653:"Mysterious 'Forest Boy' Identified by German Police"
360:"Mystery of the forest boy solved, say German police"
1198:"German Court Drops Fraud Case Against 'Forest Boy'"
779:"Germany baffled by English boy who lived in forest"
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1057:""Waldjunge Ray" ist Vater – und schon wieder weg"
392:"German community service order for 'forest boy'"
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861:"Caregiver: Forest boy 'like a normal teenager'"
536:"'Forest boy' ran from pregnant partner: friend"
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714:"I Faked It: Mystery 'Forest Boy' Comes Clean"
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913:"Berlin police release photo of "forest boy""
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947:"The curious case of the missing Forest Boy"
1149:"'Bosjongen' Ray al twee maanden spoorloos"
424:"Forest boy 'inspired by 'Zeitgeist' movie"
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1151:(in Dutch). De Standaard. 22 August 2012.
834:"Forest boy 'walked from Czech to Berlin'"
282:their grandson and had DNA samples taken.
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836:. Independent Online. 22 September 2011.
949:. Irish Independent. 20 September 2012.
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450:"Forest boy 'was in adolescent crisis'"
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1208:from the original on 28 September 2013
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953:from the original on 22 September 2012
859:Chuck, Elizabeth (20 September 2011).
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486:from the original on 11 September 2012
398:from the original on 26 September 2013
210:reportedly a fan of American cartoons
1174:McElroy, Damien (27 September 2013).
810:McDonnell, John (22 September 2011).
791:from the original on 24 November 2011
678:Radford, Benjamin (10 October 2011).
509:"'Forest boy' admits to weaving tale"
7:
840:from the original on 29 January 2012
777:Paterson, Tony (17 September 2011).
1117:Foreign Staff (19 September 2012).
999:from the original on 26 August 2012
680:"German 'Wild Child' Mystery Grows"
336:from the original on 3 October 2013
694:from the original on 7 August 2012
617:Martinez, Michael (13 June 2012).
330:"Ik begrijp Robin van Helsum wel…"
14:
1095:from the original on 15 June 2012
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927:from the original on 26 June 2012
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659:from the original on 15 June 2012
576:from the original on 17 June 2012
515:from the original on 19 June 2012
456:from the original on 19 June 2012
430:from the original on 18 June 2012
372:from the original on 18 June 2012
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987:Hall, Allan (18 February 2012).
720:from the original on 6 July 2012
422:McElroy, Damien (17 June 2012).
23:
739:Braden Goyette (15 June 2012).
595:Grisani, Carol (19 June 2012).
572:. The Telegraph. 16 June 2012.
394:. BBC News. 26 September 2013.
1178:. National Post. The Telegraph
1119:"Forest Boy 'has disappeared'"
1018:FoxNews.com (7 October 2011).
911:Rising, David (13 June 2012).
885:NewsCore (21 September 2011).
478:Goessl, Leigh (20 June 2012).
1:
358:David Rising (15 June 2012).
974:"Truth about the Forest Boy"
972:Hall, Allan (16 June 2012).
167:Johan van Helsum (died 2012)
1065:(in German). 19 June 2012.
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1264:Dutch emigrants to Germany
716:. Sky News. 15 June 2012.
534:Best, Ali (20 June 2012).
72:
16:Dutch citizen (born 1992)
1028:Fox Broadcasting Company
688:Discovery Communications
599:. MSNBC. Archived from
185:(born 22 April 1992 in
176:Damien van Helsum (son)
38:, as no other articles
291:the Zeitgeist Movement
1204:. 26 September 2013.
511:. The Vancouver Sun.
550:on 24 September 2012
368:. Associated Press.
1279:People from Hengelo
482:. Digital Journal.
1233:Netherlands portal
297:Post-disappearance
57:for suggestions.
47:to this page from
1269:Hoaxes in Germany
546:). Archived from
426:. The Telegraph.
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118:(age 32)
116:22 April 1992
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1212:26 September
1210:. Retrieved
1200:. ABC news.
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1180:. Retrieved
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1159:20 September
1157:. Retrieved
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1133:19 September
1131:. Retrieved
1097:. Retrieved
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1071:. Retrieved
1062:Welt Kompakt
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1038:21 September
1036:. Retrieved
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1001:. Retrieved
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955:. Retrieved
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894:. Retrieved
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844:21 September
842:. Retrieved
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816:. Retrieved
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795:20 September
793:. Retrieved
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734:
722:. Retrieved
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698:21 September
696:. Retrieved
673:
661:. Retrieved
655:. ABC News.
633:20 September
631:. Retrieved
627:the original
601:the original
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578:. Retrieved
564:
554:28 September
552:. Retrieved
548:the original
544:Nine Network
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517:. Retrieved
490:20 September
488:. Retrieved
458:. Retrieved
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402:26 September
400:. Retrieved
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365:Toronto Star
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149:"Forest Boy"
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1182:29 December
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314:References
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112:1992-04-22
83:van Helsum
75:Dutch name
53:; try the
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62:June 2018
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271:Bild
214:and
102:Born
1030:).
923:).
690:).
623:CNN
275:DNA
147:Ray
81:is
1245::
1202:AP
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