Courtesy of New Scotland Yard Press Bureau
MOUNTING EVIDENCE: Candles (top) found in the Thames River shortly after 'Adam's' body was discovered lend credence to the theory that the boy's death was part of a ritual killing. The candles were wrapped in a sheet (middle). A graphic depiction of the boy's torso, (bottom) along with a pair of shorts found with the body, demonstrates where he was dismembered.

In a remarkable show of scientific sleuthing, London detectives combined mitochondrial DNA analysis, traditional forensic tests, and legwork that took them halfway around the globe, to narrow down the identity of a murdered 6-year-old boy. The child, whose headless, limbless torso was found floating in the Thames River nearly two years ago, reportedly died of neck injuries.

The case began on September 21, 2001, when the child, whom police call Adam, was discovered in east London. Suspecting that he had been killed...

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