Man who identified himself as American Travis Timmerman found in Syria after being released from prison

A man who identified himself as an American from Missouri, Travis Timmerman, was found in Syria on Thursday after he said he had been released from prison earlier in the week, when the longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad was forced to leave power for a shock rebel offensive.

Timmerman told CBS News foreign correspondent Elizabeth Palmer that he had been trying to leave the country after being released from prison where he had been held for more than half a year. He said he was detained when he entered Syria without permission seven months ago after spending a month in neighboring Lebanon.

A US official told CBS News that the government was aware of reports that an American had been found outside Damascus and was trying to provide support, but the official declined to provide further details out of respect for your privacy.

Timmerman said two men armed with AK-47s broke down his prison door on Monday with a hammer.

“My door was broken in, it woke me up,” Timmerman said. “I thought the guards were still there, so I thought the war might have been more active than it ended up being. . . . Once we got out, there was no resistance, no real fighting.”

Timmerman said he had gone to Syria for Christian “spiritual purposes” and that his experience in prison “wasn’t bad at all.”

“I was never beaten. The only really bad part was that I couldn’t go to the bathroom when I wanted to. They only let me out three times a day to go to the bathroom,” she said.

Timmerman said he left the jail with a large group and began to leave. He said he had been trying to make his way to Jordan.

He said he “had some scary moments” when he got out of prison, and he hadn’t really processed that he was free.

“I haven’t thought about it yet. I’ve been more concerned about finding a place to sleep every night since then,” he told CBS News. “So I’ve been working, really.”

Timmerman said he hadn’t been afraid to approach people for help or a place to sleep during his trip.

“They were coming to me, mostly,” Timmerman said, adding that he had spoken to his family three weeks ago, through a phone he had while in prison. He said he had been allowed to use it.

“I’m fine. I’ve been fed and watered, so I’m fine,” Timmerman said.

Timmerman was named “Travis Pete Timmerman” in a missing person bulletin issued by Hungarian police in August, which said he was last seen at a church in the country.

A missing person bulletin issued by the Missouri State Highway Patrol said Timmerman, whose first name was listed as Pete, was last seen in Budapest. The bulletin stated that the date of her last contact had been June 2, 2024, and that she was 29 years old when she disappeared.

Camilla Schick i

Joanne Stocker

contributed to this report.