Missing man found dancing naked in transformer box

A missing Louisiana man has been safely found in Hancock County. Officials say he's been inside an electric transformer box for the past few days. Truck driver Thomas Dowling said he couldn't quite believe what he saw when he spotted a naked man jumping up and down inside a Mississippi Power substation on Wednesday morning. Aware of the all-out manhunt that had taken place in the area, Dowling said it took a moment to click that he had just found Bryan Ashley Hulse Jr., a 29-year-old Houma man missing since Saturday.

"That's not something you see every day but then I put 2 and 2 together and realized it had to be him," he said. "He was dancing like he was walking on a high wire with his arms flapping from side to side. When I saw that, I knew it just had to be him." Chief Deputy Don Bass said authorities then picked up Hulse. Bass said the investigation revealed the 5-foot-3, 200-pound Hulse was aware of the search and had been hiding for several days in a breaker-control cabinet at the substation, which is surrounded by a metal fence topped with barbed wire.



Hulse was naked when he was found and had some scratches on him, Bass said. Bass said Hulse has been charged with possession of a controlled substance and is in custody pending a bond hearing. Hulse's family last saw him at about 4pm on Saturday. Authorities began searching for him on Monday morning and actually had their command centre set up next to the substation. Despite plenty of loud noises from the dogs, horses, helicopters and search crews of more than 40 people at times, Hulse never showed himself during the two-day search.

Hulse's footprints and articles of clothing also were found throughout the region, with some footprints left in mud next to the substation. Investigators also discovered a bag of a powdered substance - believed to be meth - in Hulse's abandoned Dodge Charger, which complicated the search. During the search, there was major concern for Hulse's well-being, considering cold overnight temperatures, damp conditions and a lack of food and water. After Hulse was found, his mother, Penny Dardar, said she was worried but never lost hope. "I knew that he was all right because he's smart in the woods," she said. "He's been hunting for years, but it's cold and dark out there so I was scared for him."