Missing Sydney girl Michelle Levy was apparently found by a 24-year-old man. The man looked after the 11-year-old schoolgirl keeping her in his flat on Saturday night.

According to Michelle's father, Adam, it was the same man, who had found his daughter at Bondi Junction on Saturday. The stranger is presently being questioned by the police. The man Michelle spent a couple of nights with is apparently responsible for keeping the runaway schoolgirl in safe custody. Adam said that he believed that the man had come across his daughter at Bondi Junction on Saturday night and "essentially taken her into his care."

Adam also said that he had not asked much from his daughter though he had no idea who the rescuer was. However, he said that his daughter had appeared to be "chirpy" when they got reunited. Michelle reportedly had an argument with her family at around 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. She ran away from home soon after the argument and went missing for two days. An extensive search was eventually launched. According to her father, this was not the first time Michelle had run away from home. However, she went only as far as her grandparents' houses.

Michelle's mother Anne thanked the stranger for taking care of her daughter. She apparently had tears of joy after knowing that her daughter was safe. The Australian reported that Anne had feared about the worst possible thing that could happen to her daughter. The stranger, who took care of Michelle for two days, eventually got in touch with Anglicare that contacted her family. According to a family counsellor, the family needs to have a calm conversation with Michelle, who is presently interrogated by police. "While any parent will be feeling relief and gratitude that their daughter has been found and is safe, it's going to be mixed with anger and frustration," psychologist Justin Coulson said, "The first thing is to make sure their daughter feels safe - not just physically safe but emotionally safe." He said that children would need to understand that running away was not a solution to any problem.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that an entire community had got involved in the "staggering" effort of searching the missing girl.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au