The Metropolitan Police have made a renewed appeal for information about the unsolved murder of a young African boy, known only as 'Adam', whose torso was discovered in the River Thames 20 years ago. The boy's head and limbs had been amputated and have never been found.
On 21 September 2001, Aidan Minter spotted the torso while walking across Tower Bridge. Initially thinking it was a tailor's mannequin, he realised it was a body as it passed under the bridge. Police recovered the torso near the Globe Theatre. The boy, believed to be aged between four and seven, had died from a slit throat.
Forensic tests revealed he had lived in Africa until shortly before his death and had traces of cough syrup in his stomach. The orange shorts he wore were identified as a size and colour only sold in a few shops in Germany. Experts have suggested the murder was ritualistic, possibly linked to Yoruban beliefs or a so-called 'muti' killing.
In 2002, Nelson Mandela appealed for the boy's family to come forward. The case remains the longest unsolved child murder in recent Met history, with no one charged. In July 2002, social workers in Glasgow became concerned about two girls living with their African mother, but no further connection has been confirmed.
