France calls off search for missing toddler

LE VERNET, France - A massive on-the-ground search for a toddler missing for four days in a hamlet in the French Alps was discontinued on Wednesday, investigators said, with the focus now shifting to the evaluation of evidence already gathered.

Emile Soleil, two, was staying with his grandparents when he went missing on Saturday. He was last seen by two neighbours walking alone on a street of Haut-Vernet, a tiny village of 25 inhabitants at an altitude of around 1,200m.

Local prosecutor Remy Avon said in a statement that the massive search had not yielded any clues to solving the mystery of the boy’s disappearance, and no more search parties would be sent out to find him.

However, he said, “the investigation into the causes of his disappearance will continue, notably through analysis of the considerable amount of information and elements gathered over four days”.

On Tuesday, the prosecutor had warned that “medically, beyond a period of 48 hours, given the child’s young age… and the current intense heat… his life is very much at risk”.

The terrain in the search zone is hilly and craggy with many streams, and the region has been hit by a heatwave, with temperatures of up to 35 deg C in recent days.

Dozens of police officers and soldiers backed by dogs and a helicopter had searched 30 buildings, 12 vehicles and 12ha of terrain around Haut-Vernet, as well as interviewing 25 people.

The site has been off-limits to outsiders since early Tuesday.

The police, still hoping for a breakthrough thanks to witness statements, have circulated a picture of the blond and hazel-eyed boy who was wearing a yellow top, white shorts and hiking shoes the day he disappeared. AFP