Footage Captures Moment Man Missing For 27 Years Was Found In Neighbors Cellar Just Minutes From His Home

In a truly shocking revelation, authorities recently uncovered the location where Omar Bin Omran had been hidden. 

He was reportedly abducted back in 1997, when he was only 17 years old.

Back then, Omran was just a teenager heading to his vocational school in Algeria. 

It took until this past Sunday, May 12, for the authorities to finally track him down.

Omran was just 17 when he disappeared. X / @m0ath

Since his discovery, footage showing the moment Omran was found has circulated on social media platform X and has also been shown on various Algerian TV channels.

In the video, you can spot Omran, now with a beard, peering into the beam of a flashlight from what seems to be a pit, nestled amongst some hay.

The footage continues to capture the ongoing investigation, highlighted by the flashing of emergency lights.

Now at the age of 45, Omran was discovered under the floor of what appears to be a sheep pen.

The fact that Omran had been held captive for 27 years is shocking on its own.

However, what made the situation even more astounding is that he was found only 300 feet away from where his own family lives.

After he was found, the 61-year-old man who is believed to have held him captive tried to escape but was quickly apprehended and has since been detained.

Omran was found in a space under the hay. X / @m0ath

During the time of his disappearance, amidst the turmoil of the Algerian Civil War in 1997, Omran’s family had feared he had been kidnapped or even killed.

Despite the grim outlook, his mother clung to hope until she passed away in 2013.

The case came back into the spotlight after the brother of the man accused of the kidnapping, who is said to work as a civil servant, made a revealing social media post.

He hinted at his sibling's involvement in the abduction during a dispute over inheritance.

This tip led the National Gendarmerie in Algeria to search the suspect’s home, where they found a hidden trapdoor under some hay.

X / @m0ath

A court official explained the proceedings, stating: "Following this report, the General Prosecutor of the Court of Idrisiya in the province of Djelfa ordered the National Gendarmerie to initiate a thorough investigation and officers were dispatched to the property in question.

"The Public Prosecutor's Office has ordered medical and psychological support for the victim, and the suspect will be brought before the Public Prosecutor's Office as soon as the investigation is complete."

Following his long-awaited rescue, Omran was immediately taken to a medical facility to receive both physical and psychological care.

In an interview reported by the Elkhabar newspaper, Omran shared a chilling detail: he could sometimes see his family through a window in the cellar where he was confined.

Despite this, he felt unable to shout for help, describing it as if "a compelling force inside me, preventing me".

The man accused of this grievous act is now facing trial, charged by the attorney general’s office with committing a "heinous crime".