The British police detective leading the hunt for the killer of a young boy whose dismembered body was found floating in the River Thames today described the murder as "tragic and traumatic."
Detective Superintendent Adrian Maybanks said the child would have died a "very violent death".
Speaking at a press conference in east London, he said the body was that of a black Afro-Caribbean boy of around five and a half-years-old.
He moved to reassure the public that police would not rest until the killer was arrested.
The body was seen floating in the River Thames by a member of the public who was crossing Tower Bridge on Friday afternoon, he said.
The body, which is thought to have been in the river for between one and 10 days, was recovered by river police.
"We are appealing for anybody who has any knowledge of the identity of this child - anybody who has knowledge of a black male child who is missing and has not been seen for some time also anybody acting suspiciously near the water front of the Thames from Teddington to the estuary." Detectives were keeping an open mind over a motive, he added.
PA