Detectives probe conflicting claims over boy's death

GARDAI are set to begin a dig to try to find the resting place of a young boy they fear may have been killed and secretly buried.

- BY MICHAEL O'TOOLE Crime and Defence Editor

Sources told us the excavation and other searches could take place in north Co Dublin as early as today.

The decision comes just days after gardai in the area began a major probe into concerns the boy may have been killed as many as four years ago.

Sources tell us gardai believe the child, who was last seen alive around four years ago when he was aged around three and a half, is dead and was secretly buried - but have been told conflicting stories of how the boy lost his life.

It's understood the mother of the boy has told gardai that the child was killed by her ex-partner.

But sources also say gardai have been given another scenario - that the child died in his sleep.

In either scenario, however, it is accepted that the remains of the boy, who would be aged around eight now, were secretly buried in the Donabate area of north Co Dublin.

“The only way we have of knowing for sure is if we recover the boy's body and a postmortem tells us what happened,” a source said last night.