DAMASCUS, Syria — An American man who identified himself as Travis Pete Timmerman was found in a suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus by local residents on Thursday.

The 29-year-old from Missouri's Ozarks had last been seen in Budapest, Hungary. He said he was detained earlier this year after crossing into Syria on foot from Lebanon and held in prison until the fall of the Assad regime.

Travis Timmerman, 29, from Missouri, was found this week by residents wandering barefoot in a suburb south of Syria's capital.

Travis Timmerman, a missing American from Missouri, was freed from a Syrian prison and found Thursday outside of Damascus trying to make his way out of the country on foot.

A man identifying himself as Missourian Travis Timmerman tells CBS News he was liberated from a Syrian prison upon dictator Bashar al-Assad's ouster.

The man told reporters that his name was Travis Timmerman and that he had entered Syria on a religious pilgrimage. He said that he had been detained for months.

An American called Travis Timmerman who claims to have entered Syria on foot is now free after spending seven months in detention.