Three-year-old Noah Woods, whose body was found in a lake after a large-scale search, had run off from a relative at a playground through a gap in the fence, an inquest has heard.
Noah vanished from a playground in Merriam Close in Brantham, Suffolk, on September 15. Hundreds of community members joined the search for the boy, who police said was non-verbal, partially deaf and had been undergoing an assessment for autism.
Search and recovery
Around 1,300 members of the public joined the search. Met Police divers recovered Noah's body from a lake known locally as Decoy Pond on Wednesday, September 16, the day after he went missing. Suffolk Police said they were not treating the death as suspicious.
An inquest into Noah’s death was opened and adjourned in Ipswich on Friday. Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Connick told the hearing that on September 15, Noah, of East Bergholt, Suffolk, was being “looked after by relatives and this was part of a normal routine for Noah”.
Inquest details
Mr Connick said they walked to an under-fives play area and CCTV footage in the park “showed Noah playing with his relative”. The first CCTV footage was timed at 2.13pm and he was last seen playing at 2.37pm, said Mr Connick, who added the CCTV “is motion-activated so doesn’t provide continuous footage”.
He said the relative, who was not named at the hearing, had provided a statement to police. The officer said Noah “left through a gap in the fence leading to the memorial garden where he left through an open gate”.
Noah went in the direction of Decoy Pond and was “being closely followed by his relative who was trying to keep up with him”. The relative “shouted after him”, but after 200 metres Noah could not be seen.
“Police were called and a large-scale search operation began,” Mr Connick said. He said Noah was found by a Met Police diver “approximately five metres from the bank and within submerged tree roots”. The depth was estimated at 1.8 metres at that point.
Cause of death pending
A post-mortem examination at Addenbrooke’s Hospital mortuary in Cambridge recorded his medical cause of death as pending further investigation, Mr Connick said. Noah’s death was confirmed at 4.31pm by paramedics and his identity was formally confirmed by his mother Charlie Peck at Ipswich Hospital that evening.
Assistant coroner for Suffolk Jyoti Gill said at the outset of the hearing, which was not attended by family: “I would like to express my deepest condolences to Noah’s family and friends and all those affected by Noah’s death.” She said at the end of the six-minute hearing: “The inquest is adjourned to a date to be fixed in due course. Once again, my deepest condolences.”
Noah’s father Rhys Woods paid tribute to his son in a message shared on a community Facebook group last week. He described Noah as the “sweetest and most innocent little boy, with nothing but love to give”, and added: “We are going to miss him so very much.”
