Police appeal for help from public to find boy who has not been seen since mother put him to bed on Wednesday
Police searching for a missing three-year-old boy in Edinburgh say they are "deeply concerned" for his safety after the hunt for him entered its second day with no major discoveries overnight.
In a press conference held 24 hours after Mikaeel Kular was first reported missing from his home in the north-west of the city by his mother Rosdeep, police again appealed for the public's help in their hunt for the boy.
Supt Liz McAinish, who is leading the search, said: "I remain optimistic, but as time passes we become deeply concerned … We are really keen to get all the help we can."
Mikaeel was last seen when his mother put him to bed on Wednesday night.
McAinish said: "All lines of inquiry in this investigation remain open. I would ask anyone who is waking up this morning, if you searched outbuildings, gardens, garages, sheds yesterday, do it again today, because we have still not found Mikaeel. We still have no evidence of criminality at this point."
McAinish said she was unaware of any tension within the family that could have prompted Mikaeel to flee the home. She also confirmed the police had spoken to Mikaeel's estranged father.
"All of his family have been very, very helpful to the police," McAinish told reporters. "They continue to help us with our inquiries. Obviously we are as keen to get as much information from them because we just never know who might hold that vital bit of information that might help us find him."
She said the police continued to scour CCTV images of the area around Mikaeel's home but nothing significant had emerged so far.
Asked about Mikaeel's mother, McAinish said: "Mum is getting a lot of support from both the police, and her family and friends. But clearly she is very distraught. She just wants a little boy back home, as do his brothers and sisters."
More than 150 calls have been made to the police helpline, but there have been no confirmed sightings. Calls to the 0300 200 0200 number will continue to be answered by dedicated members of staff.
Police have also activated the Child Rescue Alert system, which is usually reserved for abduction and kidnap cases and supported by all police forces across the UK.
On Thursday night, police released a new image of Mikaeel wearing the parka jacket with a fur-lined hood that is also missing from the family home.
A police helicopter, sniffer dogs, coastguard and lifeboat teams have been searching the area surrounding the flat he shares with four siblings in Ferry Gait Crescent.
Police on Thursday urged people to check their gardens, sheds, parks and lock-ups for the missing youngster in the hope of finding him before nightfall, when temperatures dropped to around 3C.
A special telephone number set up specifically for the case has received more than 100 calls, the BBC said, but there have been no sightings of Mikaeel.
The child's mother put him to bed at about 9pm on Wednesday only to find his room empty when she checked at about 7.15am on Thursday.
Mikaeel, who has two sisters and two brothers, usually sleeps in the same room as his twin sister but was alone on Wednesday night. His jacket and shoes were missing and police are looking into whether he might have left of his own accord. They say there is no evidence of any criminal behaviour.
Mikaeel is 90cm (3ft) tall, slim, of Asian appearance and possibly wearing a thigh-length beige hooded coat. He may also be wearing black gloves with multi-coloured fingers, dark navy blue jogging bottoms, a grey pyjama top with an embroidered turquoise dinosaur on the chest and brown Clarks shoes.
He has a faded scar on the bridge of his nose and a sore on the left-hand side of his mouth.
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Mikaeel Kular: Edinburgh police 'deeply concerned' for missing boy, 3
Matthew Weaver
Fri, 17 Jan 2014 09:22:19 GMT
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