Mystery of dead boy found wrapped in foil, tied to concrete slab and dumped in river
The international community is being asked to help piece together what happened to a little boy.
His body was found last year, on May 19, in the River Danube near Grossmehring in Bavaria, Germany.
The child, believed to be five or six when he died, had been weighed down by a flagstone slab and wrapped in foil.
It is not known how long the boy’s remains were in the river before they were discovered, and German police have been unable to identify the child.
Investigators believe he was approximately 110cm tall, weighing 15kg, with brown hair and blood type O.
They have created a 3D reconstruction of what they think he may have looked like and offered a £8,600 (€10,000) reward for anyone comes forward with any clues.
It is believed the boy had spent time in other countries so the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) and its 195 member countries, including the UK, are now involved.
The global law enforcement institution has issued a ‘Black Notice’ – a worldwide alert asking for information on identified bodies.
Secretary general Jürgen Stock said: ‘Someone, somewhere knows something about this boy, making it equally important to release certain details publicly.
‘Whether he was the victim of trafficking, abduction or violence, we are committed to mobilising all of Interpol’s policing capabilities to identify him and help investigators shed light on his death.’
Earlier this year, Interpol appealed for help identifying the bodies of 22 women and girls they believe were murdered.
The organisation shared reconstruction images of what it is thought the victims, found in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, looked like.
The pictures were accompanied by descriptions and photos of tattoos, jewellery and other possible identifiers.
Within one week, Interpol had received more than 200 tips which included potential names for several of the victims.
At the time, Dutch police officer Martin de Wit said: ‘We are extremely grateful for all the support and attention. We have heard from experts from all over the world spontaneously offering their help.
‘It is heartwarming to see how people are massively sharing the call online and continue to do so.
‘The women in the campaign deserve to get their names back, and the information we are receiving now gives us hope for several cases. Every tip can make a difference for the next of kin of the victims.’
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