£50,000 to catch torso killer

Scotland Yard today offered a £50,000 reward to catch the killer of a five-year-old boy whose torso was discovered floating in the Thames.

Detectives have so far failed to identify the black boy three months after he was found.

The only clue to his identity was a pair of orange shorts still on his body. Now a poster featuring a silhouette of a black child, the pair of orange shorts and a confidential telephone number is being distributed across the UK and on the National Missing Persons Helpline.

Police believe the boy, who they are calling "Adam", was killed by witchdoctors who use body parts to brew potions.

Commander Andre Baker, of the Serious Crime Group South, said today: "Until we can identify him and his family, we will act as his family. We want to remind everyone that he was a person, so we have given him a name. It was considered that 'Adam' was the most appropriate name to use.

"The reward is another step in identifying the killers and we hope people will come forward with information."

Police initially believed the murder of a girl, whose torso was found in a lake at Nulde, Holland, was connected with the boy's death, but they are no longer linking the two cases. The girl has now been identified as Rowena Rikkers and her murder is thought to have been domestic-related.

The boy, who was found near the Globe Theatre on 21 September, was killed by a violent blow to the neck and then dismembered before his body was dumped somewhere between Teddington Lock and the Thames Estuary.

The well-nourished 3ft 10in victim had been in the water between one and 10 days but had not been sexually assaulted.

The investigation is focusing on whether the boy was the victim of a muti killing in which body parts are used to make medicines and potions which bring good luck.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 020 8853 1212 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.