Authorities had commenced a search for Arian at the location where a child's corpse was uncovered.
Mystery surrounds the identity of a small child discovered in the Landkreis Stade district, potentially six-year-old Arian from Bremervoerde. The little one's lifeless body was found mere kilometers away from his hometown, a site previously examined.
The technical investigation conducted at the location where the child was found in Lower Saxony's Stade district is complete, as per police reports. For now, there's no evidence of any crime. Initially, investigators surmised that the deceased child might be Arian from Bremervoerde.
A local farmer, Jan Schlesselmann, discovered the body during his afternoon work on a meadow near Behrste in Landkreis Stade. The area had been left undisturbed during farming activities, as revealed by the police report. Schlesselmann's son had mowed the field the day before and detected something odd at the field's edge. Unaware of the significance, Schlesselmann spared that corner during mowing.
when one of Schlesselmann's workers resumed work on the meadow on Monday afternoon, they too noticed an anomaly and alerted their supervisor. Recognizing the possible grave circumstances, Schlesselmann acknowledged, "I knew right away it was a child's body." The employee had also spotted a yellow T-shirt, which Arian wore when he disappeared. swiftly contacting the police, Schlesselmann was able to continue his work on the meadow that day after the investigations were finished.
Location of child's body approximately three kilometers from Elm
The exact identity and cause of death of the deceased child are yet to be confirmed definitively. Authorities have ordered further investigations with results expected later in the week. Both the crime scene team and the special investigation group handling the Arian case were part of the forensic examination.
The site where the child was found is approximately three kilometers from the Elm community in Bremervoerde, where Arian went missing on April 22. The area around Elm in northern Lower Saxony was searched for Arian by response teams on several occasions. A police spokesperson confirmed this. If the deceased child is indeed Arian, investigators will seek to understand the sequence of events. Many in the area question why the child remained unnoticed for such a long time.
Reportedly, the discovery site was conspicuous after the meadow work was completed, located near the edge of the meadow. The grass in the area was only about ten centimeters high in April.
Farmer Schlesselmann expressed disbelief to the dpa, asking, "Why didn't you find him?" He couldn't comprehend it. "That's a lot, all of that." Previously, the area had been searched by the authorities. "They were everywhere."
Following the disappearance of the autistic six-year-old, an extensive search was conducted in the Elm area for nearly a week. Around 1200 emergency response personnel from the fire department, police, Bundeswehr, and various aid organizations took part. Helicopters, drones, tracking dogs, divers, and sonar boats were used, while efforts were also made to attract Arian's attention using balloons, sweets, fireworks, children's songs, and powerful searchlights.
Search efforts called off in late April
According to the police, footage from a surveillance camera showed Arian leaving his parents' home alone and running towards a wooded area. It was believed that the boy may have been moving alone and potentially hiding. An accident, such as a fall into the Oste river, was also considered possible.
The community was involved in the search, asked to inspect potential hiding spots on private property and review footage from surveillance cameras. The large-scale search ended in late April. However, a police investigation team continued to work on the case and coordinated targeted further measures. For example, the Oste river, which flows through Elm, was searched again from May up to its mouth into the Elbe.
