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Authorities are puzzled over the case of a mentally impaired young man in North Jakarta who is said to have reappeared after being buried two years ago.

Bunyamin, 70, said his son Salim died in September 2008 from acute lung disease. Salim, 18, was buried at Budi Darma Cemetery in Cakung, North Jakarta. Friends and family were present at the funeral.

But Salim allegedly came to his cousin Atin’s house, which is near their own, on Wednesday night. Atin took the boy to see his family.

“He came around 11 p.m. on Wednesday night with Atin. I was so shocked. Salim hugged me and called me ‘Bapak.’ He cried in my arms,” Bunyamin told Kompas.com on Thursday.

Bunyamin was convinced that the boy was his son.

“His face hasn’t changed. I remembered the scar on his arm but he looks shorter than he was two years ago,” said Bunyamin.

Bunyamin’s wife Kasinah, 60, also believes their son has come back from the dead.

“This is my son. He’s the same as I remember. He called me ‘mother’ last night,” Kasinah said.

According to the family, Salim was mentally challenged from a young age. He could not speak very well and often used sign language.

News of the puzzling event spread fast, and crowds of curious people have come to Bunyamin’s house.

On Thursday evening, Tanjung Priok Police took Salim to the police station for identification.

Salim finds it hard to communicate. To determine whether Salim really is alive again, police will check Salim’s grave to further examine his body.

It is not unknown for people to be declared dead prematurely. Earlier this month a Chinese man's family found him still alive in his coffin at a mortuary. Authorities theorized the man's heart had stopped beating at the scene of his motorcycle crash but started beating again after he was declared dead.