Missing man misses his mom

BARTLESVILLE, Okla., May 8 (UPI) -- An Oklahoma man missing for seven years was located when he applied for a South Dakota driver's license so he could visit his mother this Sunday.

One-time geologist David Lee Rockey, 58, says he decided to get a new license because he wanted to see his mother on Mother's Day, The Oklahoman reports.

Rockey disappeared in August 2002, after heading for a job interview near Bartlesville, Okla.

His car was found parked at Tulsa International Airport but police determined he never boarded a plane. Police said he apparently just boarded a bus, moving from place to place and surviving by doing odd jobs.

To add to the mystery, Rockey was described by friends as "stable" and a "loving family man," someone unlikely to pull a disappearing act. He had left behind a wife of 26 years and two sons.

A private investigator hired by the family said Rockey had been murdered and a psychic came up with several spots where he was supposedly buried.

Speculation came to an end when Rockey tried to get a driver's license in South Dakota and state troopers told him to call Oklahoma police.