Missing Healdsburg man found in Windsor watching TV in stranger's home

After a massive police and community search Friday night in Windsor, a missing 84-year-old Healdsburg man was found watching TV in a Windsor stranger's home just before 1 a.m. Saturday.

Sonoma County Sheriff's deputies said the man, Delbert Pearl, was "disoriented but otherwise safe and sound," according to a sheriff's office news release.

Pearl was found only a half-mile away from where he went missing Friday night. His discovery was made by a Windsor homeowner, who woke up to find a strange man watching TV in the living room.

According to the news release, Windsor Police Department received a report at about 7:30 p.m. Friday that Pearl was missing from the 100 block of Billington Lane in Windsor, where he was visiting family.

Family members told police that Pearl walked away from the home alone, police said.

 "His family called law enforcement to report him missing and 'at risk' due to the fact that he suffers from dementia and he is not familiar with the area," the sheriff's release said.

  Deputies from the Windsor Police Department along with Sheriff's deputies scoured the area looking for Pearl, the release said.

At about 8:30 p.m. the Sheriff's Search and Rescue (SAR) Team was called out to assist in the search.

"Reverse 911 calls" were also made to area residents, alerting them to be on the lookout for the missing man, police said.

"Deputies and SAR members began searching area parks, fields and streets as well as going door-to-door in an organized search effort,"

 At about 12:50 a.m. a resident in the 6100 block of Gabrielle Drive in Windsor (about one half-mile away from the Billington Lane address) awoke to find an unfamiliar man seated in the living room watching TV. 

"The resident contacted sheriff's dispatch and advised them of the man," police said. "Deputies responded to the Gabrielle Dr. address and confirmed the stranger was in fact Pearl."

Pearl was reunited with his family members immediately, police said