Police rule out third-party negligence in Joe's case
Created: 06/28/2022, 15:26
A police officer carries handcuffs and his service weapon.
© Oliver Berg/dpa/symbol image
According to police investigations, eight-year-old Joe, who was found under a manhole cover in Oldenburg after eight days, got lost in the sewer system himself.
Third-party negligence is currently excluded, the police said on Tuesday.
Oldenburg – After evaluating all traces and clues, the officials assumed that Joe crawled through a drain into the rainwater sewer system on the day of his disappearance and lost his orientation there after several meters.
The mentally disabled eight-year-old was reported missing on June 17.
After eight days of an intensive search, a walker heard a soft whimpering from the direction of a manhole cover on Saturday morning and dialed the emergency call.
When emergency services opened the heavy lid just a few hundred yards from Joe's childhood home, they found the boy.
According to police, he appeared unharmed but had a cold.
dpa