Member-only story
The Torso in the Thames
On the 21st September 2001, the first known case of child sacrifice in British history was opened. The discovery of the torso in England’s most famous river shocked people across the world.
The man who found the body was crossing Tower Bridge when he saw what he thought was a barrel in the water. The torso would later be identified as a young boy, between four and seven years old, who was wearing orange shorts.
The boy had been poisoned and his throat had been slit, draining all the blood from his body. His limbs were never found and had been removed by an expert, the police claimed. Testing of the body showed that the boy they named “Adam” had not been in the U.K long and was likely to be from Nigeria.
“We have taken the unprecedented step of giving him a name; Adam. Until his family is identified we will act as his family, and his community will be the community of London.” — Andy Baker Commander, September 2001.
A news report on the discovery of Adam prompted a viewer to call in and tell investigators that she had bought similar orange shorts from a Woolworths in Germany, giving the police their first clue.
