Body Of Missing 4-Year-Old Found In South Boston: State Police

BOSTON, MA — State police confirmed to the media early Monday afternoon that they had recovered the body of a 4-year-old boy who had been missing from the Castle Island area of South Boston since Sunday night.

Police said that the body of Mohamed Abou Fofana was discovered on Spectacle Island, which is directly across the water from the area of Castle Island where he was last seen.

"With much sadness, we report that we located Mohamed's body at 12:29 PM today on the shoreline," the Massachusetts State Police said in a statement released at 2 p.m. "Our detective unit for Suffolk County will conduct the follow-up death investigation.

"We express our deepest condolences to his family."

Police had continued the search for the missing boy in the area of Castle Island on Monday morning as the boy's mother issued an emotional plea for help finding her son more than 12 hours after he was last seen.

He had last been seen Sunday evening at about 7 when his grandfather said he wandered off from a family trip to the beach.

The boy had sickle-cell disease and was on the autism spectrum, and had trouble communicating.

Patrols, the Massachusetts Marine Unit, MSP Dive Team and Air Wing searched the beach area for hours before suspending operations for the night.

WBZ-TV reported late Monday morning that state police taped off the park at Castle Island and began a new ground search around the fort with K9s.

Fofana was with his older sister and grandfather playing at a park Sunday evening near the water when he vanished.

Fofana's mother, Macenjay, pleaded for help finding her son on Monday, telling assembled media: "Help me to give it to me, my little baby, please. Please. He doesn't have a daddy here. I'm here with my kids.

"Please, please people, help me find Mohamed."