Police searching for boy, 2, who fell into river issue urgent plea

20 February 2024 , 20:55

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A search operation underway on the River Soar in Leicester following reports that a two-year-old boy fell into the water (Image: PA)

Police searching for a two-year-old boy who fell into a river have issued an urgent plea to the public, urging them to avoid joining the search.

The toddler went into the River Soar in Aylestone Meadows on Sunday around 5pm, with the rescue effort continuing into its third day. Additional teams have been deployed, including marine recovery dogs and drones joining the search on Tuesday. Detectives also believe they have obtained CCTV of the moment the child fell into the water while accompanied by his family.

The boy's father also entered the water on Sunday after the youngster fell in, which it's believed was a desperate attempt to rescue him. The man was taken to hospital as a precautionary measure and later discharged. Specialist teams were called to the scene on Monday (February 19) to aid with the search efforts, while Leicestershire Police has also received support from Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Police as well as the Metropolitan Police in London.

Search efforts are expected to continue in the coming days, according to police, with Leicestershire Police's Assistant Chief Constable Michaela Kerr saying the force is determined to reunite the boy with his family. His family continues to be supported by officers, with anyone who has information urged to call police on 101 and quote incident 476 of February 18.

Police believe they have CCTV of the moment the child fell in (PA)

Earlier today, police said they had obtained footage which appears to show the horrifying moment it happened. Meanwhile, the force has urged people not to attempt to help with the search, or risk putting themselves at risk. The latest statement said: "We've had officers from the underwater search teams from Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire who have continued to do underwater searches.

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"We have had colleagues from the fire service, Water Safe UK, Leicestershire Search and Rescue, Warwickshire Search and Rescue and West Mercia Search and Rescue plus a specialist team from Kent - they have all been helping us out with surface searches and sonar.

The child fell in the river on Sunday (Tom Maddick SWNS)

"We've cleared a big area of the River Soar today to a high assurance level and we're continuing searches tonight and these will go on into tomorrow with underwater searches, when we will be getting some specialist support from the Environment Agency. What I would ask of people is please this to us, we are searching to a plan and getting advice from experts. I know this is an emotive subject and people want to help, but please leave it to us and don't put yourselves at risk."

A spokesperson for the force said earlier: "From enquiries conducted so far and from studying CCTV from the local area we have obtained footage which we believe shows the young boy falling into the water." Assistant Chief Constable Michaela Kerr also said today that the priority remained locating the child after saying on Monday she was "confident" he would be found.

Ryan Merrifield