The 8-year-old boy who disappeared in Ceuta after going out to play a soccer game on Sunday is found dead

The Ceuta National Police located early this Monday morning the lifeless body of Mohamed, an 8-year-old boy whose disappearance had been reported on Sunday night at the Autonomous City Police Headquarters.

He was in a field, in a transit area, and "apparently, he showed signs of violence," sources close to the investigation have indicated, waiting for the autopsy to determine if he could have suffered a blow to the head, as is presumed. , which could cause death.

The little boy had gone to play a soccer game in a field near his home, in the Loma Colmenar neighborhood, close to the Hospital and the well-known El Príncipe neighborhood of the autonomous city.

He lived with his parents, Spaniards of Muslim origin, who were alarmed to see that the hours passed and he did not return home that night, and they went to report his disappearance to the Police Headquarters, according to the same sources.

It was approximately seven in the evening, when the boy was playing soccer with other children, although at that time "he was a substitute", according to the first statements of the companions.

Investigators are now trying to find out why he "left before the end of the meeting."

The area in which little Mohamed was found is a hill that is on the same block as his house and a sports area, close to a parking lot.

It was, in any case, a place known to him, in a total extension of about 800 meters, which he used to walk without problems.

Investigators believe that, when they found him, he had been dead for "several hours", waiting for the autopsy to mark the moment of his potentially violent death.

The fatal discovery occurred around eight this morning, confirming the worst omens and leaving "a family devastated", according to the same sources.

The boy's body was found in the vicinity of the sports court and the parking lot, located next to the promotion of 225 social housing that adjoins the University Hospital, where he lived, about 500 meters from the border of the city with Morocco and from the neighborhood of the Prince.

The head of the Court of Instruction number 6 of the autonomous city has decreed the secrecy of the summary.

Agents of the National Police at the place where the body of the missing minor was found in Ceuta, this Monday.

Joaquin Sanchez

Late at night, his family filed a complaint with the police about the disappearance of the minor, and explained that he had left home to play a soccer game with some friends on Sunday afternoon.

Seeing that he did not return to the house, his father went to the police.

Throughout the night the Police have maintained a strong search device for the child, focused mainly on the neighborhood of Loma Colmenar, the Sidi Embarek cemetery and the vicinity of the hospital.

Finally, the body has been found with the first light of day.

For his part, the president of the Autonomous City, Juan Jesús Vivas (PP), has expressed his condolences "on behalf of all the people of Ceuta" for the death of the minor, a resident of the Loma Colmenar neighborhood.

"The loss of a life is always an unfortunate event, but if it is a minor, it is already an insurmountable tragedy," lamented Vivas, who has conveyed his condolences to the family of the deceased and has made a service available to them. psychological assistance.

The head of the Government of Ceuta has also requested caution so that the Police do their job in order to clarify the causes of death, in a city that has reduced crime levels by 14% in one year.

As a "show of deep pain and solidarity with the parents and the rest of the family of little Mohamed", the Autonomous City of Ceuta has declared official mourning for 24 hours from midnight this Saturday.

During this period, the Ceuta flag will fly at half mast in all institutional buildings.

In the same way, this Tuesday at noon a minute of silence will be observed at the gates of the Palace of the Assembly.